


All I Wanted Was You

by justyrae



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Angst, F/M, Genderswap, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Misunderstandings, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-10
Updated: 2017-05-10
Packaged: 2018-10-26 03:57:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 52,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10779084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justyrae/pseuds/justyrae
Summary: Liam never dreamt of being famous, she just liked to write songs from time to time. She preferred being behind-the-scenes rather than in the spotlight, which is part of the reason why she agreed to accompany Harry to London when he was offered a record deal. Perhaps she'd been foolish but she'd expected things to stay the same, or at the very least she expected that Harry would stay the same.or, a Begin Again AU.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> WOW I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M FINALLY POSTING THIS I FEEL LIKE I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR-LITERALLY-EVER!!
> 
> ok so this fic follows the BASIC plot progression of the film begin again (which i HIGHLY recommend, but isn't a pre-requisite for reading this fic) but i did change a number of things so if you HAVE seen it, then the fic won't be spoiled. pls ignore my total lack of knowledge about how the music industry works, obviously i'm not a record exec or popstar, i'm a fic writer. it's called artistic liberty for a reason :D
> 
> in terms of the tagged cheating, please see the end of work notes. for spoiler reasons, i haven't included the explanation here.
> 
> this fic is dedicated to everyone who cheered me on as i spent months and months writing this, esp my beta readers without whom i'd be eternally lost. and i'm only mildly sorry that everyone had to endure me yelling about this film on a semi-regular basis. it's one of my faves, what can i say?
> 
> ALSO the biggest of emoji hearts to my wonderful artist [salem](http://guccisuit.tumblr.com/) who created the gorgeous picspam for the tumblr post AND an epic mix (that i haven't stopped listening to since she sent it to me) that you can find [here](https://open.spotify.com/user/12101705012/playlist/4zmjDSlv1pcfAY3R4JcsVH)!

If Liam closes her eyes she can still pretend she's back in Birmingham in her tiny post-uni flat with the wonky heater and a piano that took up half the space of the living room. She remembers the smell of tea brewing on the stovetop, the feel of the corduroy sofa and the marks it would leave on her skin when she spent hours curled up there with her guitar on her lap.

She misses it, the cramped spaces and sharp corners that bruised her hips more often than not even though after living there for two years she knew exactly where everything was. It wasn't Buckingham Palace but Liam never needed it to be. It was her home and it had everything she needed, including a boy she never thought she'd lose.

"What're you doing?"

Liam jumps at the sound of Niall's voice, surprised by that and the fact that somehow she didn't hear the door open. She'd picked the spot by the window in Niall's living room specifically so she could wait and see when Niall was coming home, but instead she got lost in her own thoughts.

"Nothing," she answers quickly as she tugs her fingers out of the knots she's made in her hair by twisting it while daydreaming.

Niall sighs. "You were thinking about Harry again, weren't you?"

"No," Liam replies, keeping a straight face for about half a second before she slumps and lets out a sad sigh. "Maybe."

Niall frowns and steps forward to wrap his arms around her, letting her bury her face in his shoulder just like she's done every time they've hugged since she came to stay a few days earlier.

"He's a prick," he gently reminds her.

"He's not, though." Liam sighs. "Or, he wasn't before."

"He is now." Niall hugs her tighter. "D'you wanna come out with me tonight?"

"What for?"

"So I don't come home and find you… well." Niall goes quiet and Liam squeezes his arm. He doesn't have to continue for Liam to know what he's getting at. Sure, she's been a little down the last few days but...

"I wouldn't do that," she says firmly.

"Just making sure." Niall hums softly as he releases her from his grip and crosses the floor towards the kitchen. "So was that a yes to coming out with me?" he asks as he starts filling the kettle for tea.

"I dunno," Liam says as she turns back to the window. "I was thinking about taking the train back home in the morning, maybe."

Liam jumps a little when the kettle suddenly drops into the sink and when she turns her head Niall's already looking at her with a frown. She closes her eyes as she lets out a sigh; she already knows what's coming because Niall's been successfully managing to talk her out of taking the train back to Birmingham every night for the last few days.

She tells herself she's not running away from her problems because there's nothing left for her to fix in London. The only reason she came to London in the first place was because Harry asked her to and now that they're not together anymore she just doesn't see the point in staying. There's a hole in her heart that feels bigger than all the vast streets of the city put together. The warmth she felt when Harry smiled at her has been replaced by a chill that makes her bones ache. She just doesn't know how she'll ever move on if she doesn't leave.

"But Liam, you can't--"

"Stop telling me I can't, Niall." Liam crosses her arms. "I'm a grown woman, I can do as I like."

"Yeah, but--"

"If I want to go back to Birmingham, then I should, right? Nothing's keeping me here anyway. I haven't got a job, a place to live, anyone to…"

Liam's voice breaks and she bites down hard on her bottom lip as it trembles. She turns her face back towards the window in an effort to hide her tears from Niall, despite the fact that he's seen her cry no less than fifteen times since she arrived. She hates crying in front of anyone at all, but somehow it's worse crying now than it ever has been before. She feels ridiculous and foolish for crying over Harry yet again when he probably forgot all about her the moment she walked out of the door.

It feels like ages ago that she walked out of the flat with everything she owned in a suitcase and her guitar slung over her shoulder, leaving Harry and the world she knew behind. The only solace she finds in the memory is the relief that she didn't cry as she left, or during the ride on the tube to Niall's flat on the other side of the city. Liam managed to keep her composure until Niall opened his door and greeted her with a smile.

"You've got me," Niall says as he walks back over to her and wraps his arms around her again, tucking his chin over her shoulder. "I know it's not the same, but…"

"You're more than I could've ever asked for," Liam replies with a sniffle as she pats Niall's hand. "But I've got to try and land on my own feet again."

"But in Birmingham?" Niall says, his voice laced with mock disgust. Liam tries to elbow him but even when she succeeds it doesn't stop him from continuing. "I dunno why you stayed there after uni in the first place."

"Could always go stay with my mum and dad in Wolverhampton," Liam muses. Niall groans in outrage, the sound so ridiculous that Liam cracks a smile without even realizing.

"Now I really can't let you leave, Li. I can't let you go back to living in your mum and dad's house, nope, I can't allow it. You're stuck here with me whether you like it or not!"

"What're you going to do to keep me here? Hide my money?"

"That's an idea." Niall grins. "I could also bribe you with tea made just the way you like it."

"Not if you keep denting your kettle, you can't."

Niall groans again and pulls away from Liam to head back towards the kitchen, muttering under his breath about distractions and dented kettles the whole way. Liam's smile grows wider and she realizes she's long since stopped crying and that she actually feels loads better. It's quite incredible how Niall always seems to make her smile or laugh even when she's feeling worse than ever before.

Liam stands up and stretches before she makes her way over towards the kitchen and leans against the counter as Niall sets out two mugs. Her eyes fall on Niall's poor kettle, a brand new dent on the side makes it sit over the burner even more precarious than before and she shakes her head.

"I should've just fallen in love with you instead, Nialler."

Niall laughs loudly as though they haven't shared this joke a hundred times before.

"Yeah, you really fucked up there. You could've had all of this," he says as he gestures around his tiny flat. "What _were_ you thinking?"

"I was a fool," Liam replies, the hint of a smile spread across her lips. It's less of a joke than she meant it to be and even though it's obvious Niall picks up on it, he chooses to change the subject rather than dwell on it.

"Ah, well," he says with a shrug as he pours the hot water into their mugs and dumps in the tea bags, "here's to loving each other but not fancying each other."

"Cheers," Liam says as she clinks her mug against Niall's.

He waits approximately thirty seconds after Liam's taken a sip of her tea to speak again, a wry grin on his face as he revisits an earlier subject.

"So you're coming out tonight, right?"

Liam rolls her eyes. "If I must."

"Excellent. You'll love it." Niall clinks his mug against hers and waits for her to take a sip before he adds, "It's open mic night."

*

The pub is dark, a bit dingy, and far more crowded than Liam expected it to be. Niall introduces her to half a dozen people of whom she’s not sure whether she's met them all before or not. She finds herself squished onto a couch with half of them regardless as they all wait for Niall's slot to perform. She's clutching a mostly-full glass of beer in her hand because she was too polite to decline a drink at all when offered, but now that it's been about an hour since her last sip, she really wishes she hadn't come at all.

Niall's been trying to keep her involved in the conversation, but with people playing music on the stage just a few feet away it's fairly difficult to hear anything at all. Liam mostly nods and smiles when someone looks in her direction, hoping for the best and praying that they don't actually want her opinion on whatever topic they're discussing.

It feels like another few hours pass before it's actually Niall's turn to sing. Liam's been plotting her escape for the past several minutes when Niall suddenly jumps up from his seat amidst a round of applause. Liam's startled into clapping along with everyone else, only narrowly avoiding spilling her glass of beer all over herself.

Once Niall starts playing his guitar and singing Liam finds herself feeling better. She's always loved watching the performances of people she cares about. Niall is fun and engages with the crowd and it makes Liam feel like they're back in uni all over again. It reminds her so much of the days she used to spend with Niall all those years ago in Birmingham that she almost expects to see Harry among the crowd. It pains her heart when she remembers that he isn't.

Why would he be? For all Liam knows he's not even in the city anymore. He's probably off somewhere around the world, charming everyone he meets and making them all fall in love with him. Even the very thought brings tears to Liam's eyes and makes her throat close up. Liam curses softly, the sound lost to anyone's ears but her own in the midst of all the noise, and tries to wipe at her eyes as discreetly as possible.

Niall's finishing up a song by the time she's composed herself again, her breaths returning to normal just in time for a surprise that makes Liam stop breathing all over again.

"If it's alright with you lot, I'd like to bring a friend up on stage to play one of her songs. She's incredibly talented and you'll all love her, I promise. Liam?"

Liam's heart stops beating when Niall looks at her expectantly, holding his hand out and gesturing for her to come towards him.

"No!" she whispers harshly. Niall slides off of the stool onstage and hurries over towards her, his guitar still in his hand as she tries to tell him it's a terrible idea.

"C'mon, Li. You need this, it'll be good for you!"

"No, Niall, I--"

"Everyone wants to hear your song," he says, turning back to the crowd to get their support. "Don't you?"

Cheers echo through the bar and Liam groans, glaring at Niall when he turns back to look at her.

"I'm going to smother you in your sleep tonight, Niall."

"No you won't, you love me."

Niall takes her hand and pulls her all the way towards the stage just to ensure she doesn't take off running in another direction instead. He hands over his own guitar with a smile, leaning in to press a kiss to her cheek for good luck and ducking out of the way before she can hit him anywhere particularly painful.

"Hi," Liam says into the microphone before she strums the guitar, making sure it's in tune. "This, uh, I wrote this a few days ago. It's about…" Liam laughs softly, embarrassed by the way her voice is already starting to crack. "Falling in love with someone you shouldn't have, and loving them even after they've hurt you." A few cheers echo through the crowd and Liam shakes her head. "I'm not the only one? That's comforting, I think."

A couple people laugh, Niall's cackle rising above the rest, and Liam takes a deep breath before she starts to play. Her fingers move across the frets as though she's played this song over a thousand times; sheer determination overruling her nerves.

_I'm like a crow on a wire_ , she starts singing softly, moving closer to the microphone, pretending she's anywhere but a dive bar in the middle of London. _You're the shining distraction that makes me fly._

Her mind drifts to Harry as she continues to sing, just like she knew it would. _I'm like a boat on the water. You're the rays on the waves that calm my mind._ Closing her eyes only makes the image of his face in her head clearer, but as much as it hurts, she also misses him too much to really want it to go away. _Oh, every time._

Memories of what they had flash before her eyes as though they're being played on a movie screen, all the way up to when she last saw him. _But I know in my heart you're not a constant star._

A fire ignites deep in her chest as she sings and fills her with the same heat of anger that she felt that night. She's been feeling it ever since, waxing and waning as the time passes. _And yeah, I let you use me from the day that we first met_. Some nights it feels like it might engulf her entirely and she'll burn until there's nothing left of her at all. _But I'm not done yet, falling for your fool's gold._

The look on Harry's face the night she left never fades from her mind; she remembers every line and the way he couldn't even look her in the eye as she passed by. _And I knew that you turned it on for everyone you met_. Her breath wavers a little as she thinks about how she even gave him one last chance, pausing in the doorway just to see if he'd do something. He didn't move a muscle to stop her, not even to call her name as she reached for the door and closed it behind her. _But I don't regret falling for your fool's gold_.

Liam forces her eyes open and Harry's face vanishes into thin air. As she looks up and into the crowd she catches the eye of someone who's staring intently back at her, the sharp blue color of their eyes almost jarring enough to make Liam miss the start of her second verse. _I'm the first to admit that I'm reckless_. Her eyes stay locked with the stranger's for another few seconds before she drops her gaze down to her guitar, overwhelmed by the intensity. _I get lost in your beauty and I can't see two feet in front of me_.

The next time Liam looks up she turns her head in the direction of where Niall's sitting with his friends, searching for the comfort and reassurance she so desperately needs. _And I know in my heart you're just a moving part_.

Niall offers a smile, warm and genuine along with two overly enthusiastic thumbs up and the sight makes Liam chuckle as she sings the chorus for the second time. She scans the rest of the room, carefully avoiding making direct eye contact with anyone. Deep down Liam knows that she's searching for Harry, even if she doesn't actually want to see him. Truth be told, even if he miraculously managed to end up in this pub tonight of all nights, Liam wouldn't even know what to say to him.

_Yeah, I know your love's not real_ , her voice wavers a little, threatening to give out. _That's not the way it feels, that's not the way it feels_.

Liam hardly hears the applause that echoes through the pub over the sound of her own heartbeat after she's finished playing. Niall appears at her side, pulling the guitar from her as he bundles her up in a hug and helps her leave the stage. She weaves her way through the throng of Niall's friends all offering her congratulations as she heads directly for the bar, flagging down the bloke behind it and ordering a drink before she even puts a hand on the wooden surface.

She distantly hears Niall's voice in the microphone back up on the stage, but it's drowned out in a matter of seconds by another man's as they slide onto the stool next to her.

"You have a beautiful voice," he says. Liam bristles at the compliment; she's never taken them well from her own friends let alone a complete stranger who might be just using it as a chat-up line. Liam grunts in return and doesn't move a muscle to look at him in the hopes that he'll give up quickly and move on to some other girl in the pub.

He doesn't leave. Liam feels his eyes boring into her and it makes her even more uncomfortable than his opening comment did. She turns her head just enough that she can look at him out of the corner of her eye and she realizes something: she knows those eyes.

"It's you," she says as she turns to face him.

He laughs. "It's me."

"No," Liam goes on, a bit put out that he thinks she's being funny, "you were staring at me, earlier. Why were you staring at me?"

"I wasn't staring, I was watching you sing." He thinks about it for a moment and before Liam can say anything further, he reconsiders. "Alright, maybe it's the same thing."

"It was creepy," Liam blurts. She counts it lucky that he simply laughs again, the smile on his face growing wider as he keeps looking at her.

"Did you write that song?" he asks, changing the subject and taking Liam by surprise.

"Yeah," she answers as she narrows her eyes and gives him a suspicious look. "Why?"

"Because it was good. And you performed it beautifully."

"Thank you?"

"I could help you make it great. Fantastic, even."

Liam's eyebrows furrow even further as he reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a card to hand to her. She pauses for a moment before she takes it, taking another long moment to stare at him before she reads it.

It's nothing particularly fancy, which doesn't quell the negative voice in the back of her mind that says _it's probably fake_. Liam doesn't recognize the name of the label that he's apparently affiliated with, but then again she'd never heard of the label that signed Harry and their roster included artists she'd been listening to since she was in nappies. She bites her lip as she reads over the entirety of the card several times, weighing the odds of it being legit in her mind several hundred times before she lets herself speak again.

"Louis Tomlinson?" she reads aloud. He extends his hand to her, his grin not fading even for a moment.

"At your service. And you are?"

"Liam," she replies. She waits a beat and then takes his hand and shakes it. "Liam Payne."

"So what d'you think, Liam Payne? How'd you like to make some music together?"

Liam frowns. That sounds far too much like a chat up line to _not_ be one. Her distaste inevitably shows on her face because Louis' smile falters for the first time since he started talking to her. He clears his throat and nervously folds his hands together, visibly anxious in a way that strangely makes Liam a little more comfortable talking to him. However, it doesn't make her comfortable enough to believe him.

"I don't think so." Liam holds out his card, intending to give it back to him. "In case you find someone else you'd like to make music with."

Louis stares at her and makes no move towards taking his card back which leaves Liam feeling a little embarrassed about the whole thing. She sets it down on the bar and goes to grab her drink so she can return to Niall's group of friends, but Louis catches her arm.

"Hear me out, please?"

Liam squeaks a little under her breath and gives Louis a terrified look that makes him drop his hand from her arm almost immediately. When their eyes meet again Liam notices a desperate look in his eyes that doesn't equate with someone who's trying to get a date, but rather someone who's looking at someone holding a glass of water after they've walked through a desert.

"Alright," she says at the end of a deep breath. "What's your story?"

Louis laughs softly. "That's a bit much to start off with, don't you think?"

"Maybe." Liam shrugs. "Start at the beginning: you're obviously not from London, so. Where'd you grow up?"

"Yorkshire. My mum and stepdad still live in Doncaster, along with my youngest sisters and brother. I've got six, in all."

"Six brothers and sisters?" Liam repeats.

"Five sisters, one brother. Two sets of twins." Louis chuckles. "Bit of a full house, growing up."

"Sounds like it." Liam shakes her head. "I had to share a bathroom with my two older sisters, I can't imagine having another four to battle it out with."

"Yeah, well." Louis shrugs one shoulder and his smile turns sort of wistful. "I miss it sometimes. My quiet flat never seems quite as homey as an overcrowded townhouse."

"Maybe you should get a roommate. Fill up the empty silences. I'm crashing with a mate at the moment, and he's _anything_ but quiet."

Louis leans in, as though his next thought is a secret. "Bit weird to have a roommate past age thirty, don't you think?"

"Nothing wrong with needing company," Liam replies. Louis leans back and hums thoughtfully.

"Fair enough." He clears his throat and props his elbow up on the bar so he can lean his head against his hand. "What's next?"

"What brought you to London?"

"Uni. Came in for drama, found out that I had a bit of an ear for arrangements, ended up in music instead. I was lucky enough to score a gig with the label right out of uni and I've been with them ever since."

Liam stares at Louis for a moment, for the first time finding it difficult to catch Louis' eye.

"You're holding something back," Liam accuses.

"What? No, I'm not."

"You are! Tell me the truth."

"I have! What I just told you is the truth."

"It's not the whole truth, is it?" Liam sighs. "I can't work with someone I don't trust, so…"

"Alright," Louis says through gritted teeth, catching Liam before she tries to leave again. "Maybe it wasn't the _whole_ story, but it's still technically the truth."

Liam crosses her arms and waits patiently for him to continue. Louis grumbles under his breath for a few seconds before he rubs his hand across his face and lets out a sharp breath.

"I brought a friend from uni to the label, convinced him to sign with them and got a job as a result. I've been managing his career ever since. Well," Louis pauses and huffs a little, "until last year, anyway."

"What happened last year?" Liam asks.

"He decided to take a break. And… um, disappeared. Sort of."

"He disappeared?" Liam blinks. "What d'you mean, he disappeared?"

"He's just like, under the radar, really." Louis shakes his head. "It's not a big deal, really. He'll come back. Eventually."

"Why'd he disappear in the first place?"

"Well…" Louis exhales again, the sound starting to irritate Liam. She can tell he's still not giving her the whole story and there's only so much hemming and hawing she can take. "I think we underestimated how popular he'd get… by quite a bit. Sort of an overnight thing, really. Didn't expect him to get so popular so quick and then suddenly four years went by without a break and he just… decided to stop."

"Just like that?" Liam frowns. "Was it really that bad?"

"It's not that it was bad, it was just a lot. It's a demanding business and he was in high demand and… I should not be telling you this because it's not going to help my case at all, is it?"

"Maybe not," Liam admits with a soft laugh.

"Fuck," Louis replies, laughing as well.

"Would I know him?" Liam asks. "Your friend?"

"Probably." Louis scratches at his eyebrow, avoiding Liam's eyes again. "His name's Ed."

"Ed. Just Ed?"

"Sheeran," Louis mumbles, almost too soft for Liam to hear it.

"Ed Sheeran? Your mate from uni is Ed Sheeran?" she asks in a flat voice.

"Should I have led with that?" Louis teases.

"I should think so! That's incredible!"

"Incredible, really? Are you reconsidering my offer, then?"

Liam's mouth twists in uncertainty and she shrugs. "You've got Ed Sheeran. You don't need me."

"You don't know that," Louis replies.

"You don't know that you do. Or that your label would even want me. And, based off of what you've told me and what I already know about the music business…" Liam pauses, gathering her strength. "I don't know that I'd want to be in it anyway."

"But…" Louis sputters. "Your music deserves to be heard outside of this shitty pub."

"So do a lot of people's." Liam shakes her head. "People who really want it. I don't think I'm one of those people."

"But how do you know you're not?" Louis presses.

"I know me." Liam goes to stand up but Louis catches her arm again.

"Okay, okay. Tell me about you, Liam Payne, and then maybe I can convince you that you _are_ one of those people."

Liam sits back down on her stool with a huff and shakes her head. "You really don't give up easy, do you?"

"Never learned how," Louis says with a grin.


	2. Chapter 2

Liam stays quiet as she and Niall travel back to his flat on the tube. It's not uncommon for Liam to keep to herself so Niall doesn't push her to talk, though it doesn't keep him from giving her these curious looks that Liam knows mean that he won't leave her alone forever.

Liam was still chatting with Louis when Niall finally finished his set onstage and came looking for her, and since then Liam's been trying to forget the look on Niall's face when he discovered the pair of them at the bar. She couldn't tell whether his surprise was laced with worry over her being taken advantage of or joy over her possibly moving on and getting over Harry. It all happened too quickly for Liam to fully explain herself, nor did she really want to get into it while they were still out in public.

"It wasn't what it looked like," she says, blurting it out the moment Niall opens the door to his flat and steps through. Niall pauses before he closes the door behind them and turns to face her with a look of absolute confusion.

"What do you think it looked like?"

"Like Louis was trying to pick me up."

"He wasn't, then?" Niall laughs a little as Liam shakes her head vigorously. "Pity."

"Niall!" Liam says, scandalized by Niall's comment. Even her forethought of Niall's eagerness for her to move on didn't prepare her for him actually saying something to that effect.

"Well, if he wasn't trying to pick you up, then what were you two talking about?"

Liam huffs out a sigh as she pulls Louis' card from the pocket of her jacket and holds it out for Niall to take. He reads it over as she sits down on the sofa, and when he's finished he gives Liam an incredulous look, one which Liam likes even less than the looks he was giving her on the tube.

"What?"

"You sure he wasn't trying to pick you up?"

"Niall!"

He laughs, tossing Louis' card onto the coffee table before he takes off his coat and drapes it over a chair before heading towards the kitchen, presumably to make tea. "Sorry, Li, but c'mon. How d'you know he doesn't hit up all the open mic pubs to give his number out to pretty girls like you?"

"Because I said the same thing to his face!" Liam huffs again and shrugs her shoulders. "He seemed genuine. And he's mates with Ed Sheeran."

"Oh, really?" Niall hums thoughtfully. "Did he have a Wikipedia page and everything?"

"Niall," Liam says in an exasperated tone, already growing tired of Niall teasing her. "I'm not an idiot, you know."

Niall frowns as he sets the kettle down and comes back over to sit down next to Liam on the sofa. "Of course you're not, I didn't say you were! It's just… I dunno, seems a bit suspicious-like, doesn't it?"

"Of course it does. Even after talking to him for nearly an hour, I dunno if I'm convinced." Liam twists her fingers together, staring down at her hands instead of looking Niall in the eyes.

"What did he say? He didn't promise anything that sounded like he was taking the piss, did he?"

"He didn't promise anything." Liam shakes her head. "Actually, he talked a lot of shit about the industry, which I dunno if he meant to do."

"Seems like a stupid thing to do when you're trying to get someone to sign to your label."

"Yeah," Liam says with a soft laugh. "I dunno, I just… there was something trustworthy about him, like, it felt like he was being honest. Does that sound stupid?"

"I dunno, I didn't talk to him." Niall shrugs. "You know I love you, Liam, but sometimes I worry that you're a bit too starry-eyed when it comes to things like this."

"Starry-eyed?" Liam frowns. "Like… do you--" She takes a deep breath. "Do you think it's my fault that Harry and I--"

"No! That's not what I'm saying, not at all!"

"I'm _not_ an idiot," Liam repeats.

"I'd never call you an idiot--"

"Why would I want to get involved in the music business anyway?" Liam goes on as she starts to sniffle and Niall deflates. "I've seen what it does to people. Just look at you."

"Hey…"

"I just mean," Liam pauses to wipe her eyes, "you're so talented and you're still struggling. It's not fair."

"Don't worry about me," Niall says as he puts his arm around Liam's shoulders and hugs her. "This isn't about me, this is about you and your brilliant songs."

"They're not _brilliant_ ," Liam mumbles.

"They are. Everyone thought so. And you got the attention of this record company bloke, so they're obviously something."

"Are you on Louis' side now?" Liam blinks. "I'm confused."

Niall opens his mouth, pauses, and then shuts it again. Liam starts to giggle and Niall joins in with a boisterous laugh of his own.

"Think I lost my point somewhere along the line," he admits.

"Think we both did." Liam tips her head to the side and rests it on Niall's shoulder as she wraps her arm around his middle while his stays around her shoulders. They sit quietly for a while, neither one attempting to pick up the threads of their conversation.

"I'll go with you," Niall says after a long pause. "If you wanted to take a meeting with Louis. Couldn't do any harm, could it?"

"S'pose not," Liam replies in a soft voice. "Do you think I should?"

"Like I said, couldn't do any harm. Just as long as you don't sign anything binding."

"They probably won't even offer me anything to sign." Liam hums, pausing for a moment. "Would be cool to meet Ed Sheeran, though. Could you imagine?"

"It'd be fucking amazing," Niall agrees. "D'you think he'd be there?"

"Dunno. Maybe."

"Put it in your contract," Niall says with a laugh, "write in that you have to meet Ed Sheeran."

"You're an idiot," Liam says, laughing along with him.

"Yeah, yeah, maybe." Niall laughs again as he gets up and walks back towards the kitchen. "Tea?"

"Please," Liam replies. Her eyes drift to Louis' card on the table in front of her and she reaches out to pick it up, turning it over in her hand a few times before she makes a decision in her head. "Think I'll give him a call tomorrow."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." She looks over at Niall, making sure their eyes are connected when she asks, "and you'll come along, right?"

"Of course! Be there every step of the way, if you want me to."

"I do." Liam sits back, sinking into the couch with Louis' card still in her hand. As she turns her head away from the kitchen her eyes drop down to the card, reading over the phone number printed and her heart does a small backflip inside her chest.

Not even the tiny voice in the back of her mind can get rid of the excitement she feels when she thinks about calling Louis tomorrow. Her more rational side tries not to get her hopes up too high, for there's no telling what'll really be on the other end of the phone line, but she holds onto the hope that it'll turn into something good.

*

After they've each had two cups of tea, Niall retires to his bed and leaves Liam alone on the sofa. She's made herself comfortable, curled up with a blanket wrapped around her as she scrolls aimlessly through her phone. She's been meaning to go through and delete all of the photos and videos of Harry, but every time she tries it ends up sending her down memory lane and she loses her nerve.

As much as it hurts to think about what she's lost, Liam still finds joy in reliving the happy times that she and Harry shared. On more than one occasion she's found herself wishing they could go back to Birmingham, back to their little university bubble where they were both happy. When they'd spend their weekends in bed all day making up songs about the shadows on their ceiling or going the long way around campus to class during the week just so Harry could show her this one weird tree he saw the day before; things that seemed insignificant at the time that Liam would do anything to have again.

Right after she'd left the big, posh flat that they'd moved into after Harry got his record deal, Liam had scrolled all the way to the beginning of her photos and gone through them one by one - until they stopped being of the both of them and all that stared back at her were snapshots of the city she'd explored by herself. Half of the photos had gone unseen by Harry even though in that first month he'd wanted a detailed explanation of each one: how she found the place, what was going on there, even how it smelled.

Liam lets herself laugh a little at the memory; she remembers crinkling her nose and repeating his question with a giggle that was soon lost in Harry's mouth. It was still good then, she thinks.

She tosses her phone aside and reaches for her laptop instead, lying to herself as she pretends like she doesn't know what she's looking for as she clicks through folder after folder. In just a few keystrokes she finds a folder full of videos from university that she usually saves for days when she's fallen deep into a hole of self-loathing.

This time, though, she tells herself it's for research. Somewhere buried in this folder is a video of one of Liam's songs that she's considering playing for Louis, but only if she can find it. She continues clicking aimlessly for a while, as though she doesn't clearly remember which day it was that she played it for Harry.

She does. She wrote the song as a birthday present and had played it for him on his twentieth birthday, just the two of them cooped up in their shoebox flat.

Liam opens the video file but hesitates to press play, taking just a few more seconds to herself before she falls headfirst into the old world she's so desperate to get back to. She sets her laptop on the coffee table and chews on her thumbnail, still staring at the opening frame of the video. It's ready, why isn't she?

"Oh, just do it," she says under her breath as she reaches forward and jabs the space bar once, setting the video in motion with the volume turned down low. Liam leans back and presses herself into the couch so that she's as far away from the laptop as she can get. She hopes that if she stays far enough away, she won't be tempted to press stop.

All the preparation in the world isn't enough for the first moment where Harry appears on the screen. Liam's heart does a little leap in her chest and her breath disappears in an instant, but her eyes never look away. Even if they snapped shut it wouldn't matter, just one look is all it takes for the memories to come crashing back.

"What're you doing, Liam?" Harry laughed as she urged him to sit down on the couch.

"Just sit. Harry!" Liam huffed as he went to stand up and she shoved his shoulder just hard enough for him to sit back down. "Sit! Stay!"

"Will I get a treat if I do?" Harry said, laughing even more when Liam glared at him before turning her back.

"Not if you're not a good boy."

When Liam faced him again, he was sitting up straight on the couch with his arms poised like a dog begging for scraps. Her guitar nearly fell from her hands as she collapsed onto the stool she'd set up for herself, unable to look at Harry for even another second without bursting into laughter.

"What?" Harry's tone was enough of a tell: he was enjoying every minute of this.

"You…" Liam paused to groan. "I can't-- You're just the worst!"

"That's not a very nice thing to say to the birthday boy." Harry frowned.

"The birthday boy shouldn't torment his girlfriend."

Harry dropped his arms and pouted until Liam cracked a smile. She got lost in the brightness of his own smile for a few seconds and as a result she nearly forgot why she'd wanted Harry's full attention in the first place.

"Don't laugh," she said.

"I'd never." Liam's cheeks burned as Harry drew an x over his heart and blew her a kiss. She forced herself to tear her eyes away from him so she could concentrate on getting her fingers into the correct position on the frets of her guitar.

Liam had spent ages working on this song in secret, stolen moments all by herself while Harry was in class or at work. She'd only managed to play it all the way through a handful of times before the deadline of Harry's birthday came around, so the best she could hope for was to not screw up too much on the chord changes.

Strangely, she didn't feel nearly as nervous as she thought she would. Her nerves had been eating away at her all week but as soon as she started playing the first notes they melted away and she played better than she ever had before.

_I got a heart and I got a soul_ , Liam's voice started out soft as though her vocal chords hadn't gotten the same fresh start as her fingers had, _believe me I will use them both_.

Her eyes stayed firmly fixed on her hands even though she could feel Harry's burn holes right through her. Liam didn't trust herself enough to finish the song if she looked directly at him and she'd worked too hard on it to let it go to waste. _We made a start, be it a false one, I know_. She'd poured so many feelings into every word, spent hours perfecting every note. _Baby, I don't want to feel alone_.

The funny thing was that Liam hadn't meant to make the song as serious as it had turned out to be. She'd intended on writing something short and silly, a light song to make Harry smile on his birthday, but when she sat down to compose it she started thinking about where they'd started and how far they'd come and it all just started coming out at once.

_We took a chance, god knows we tried_. Liam's voice caught a little as she sang, feeling choked up as she remembered how she felt after their first official date. She had laid in bed that night thinking that she must've dreamt it all up, it had been too perfect of a date for it to be real. _Yet all along I knew we'd be fine_. Not twenty minutes after Harry dropped her off at her dormitory, she received a text from him asking if she was free the following night. _So pour me a drink, oh love_. A smile spread across Liam's face as she finally looked up from her hands and saw Harry smiling at her, a look of pure adoration in his eyes. _Let's split the night wide open and we'll see everything we can living love in slow motion_.

Suddenly Liam felt a warmth in her heart and it quickly spread throughout her chest, filling her with a sense of happiness she hadn't expected to come from playing this song for Harry. Her earlier worries of messing up disappeared completely and she found that her fingers were more sure than before, her voice stronger than it had been thirty seconds ago. Her smile grew larger and even though she probably looked mildly insane, she didn't want to stop looking back at Harry.

_So kiss me where I lay down, my hands pressed to your cheeks._ Harry bit his lip and inched forward on the couch cushion, and for a moment Liam wasn't sure if he was going to be patient like he'd promised. _A long walk from the playground_ , she raised her eyebrows as she sang as if to say "you stay right there and let me finish this."

_I have loved you since we were 18, long before we both thought the same thing_. Harry inched forward again, sliding off the couch and going down to his knees on the floor in front of it. He kept moving ever closer as she continued to sing, _to be loved and to be in love_ , but he kept enough distance between them so as to not disturb her playing.

Liam laughed a little at the sight of Harry on his knees in front of her, looking so full of love that he could burst at any moment. _And all I could do is say that these arms were made for holding you_. With every passing second it looked more and more like Harry wasn't going to let her finish but Liam was determined not to give up until she had to.

After all, she only had a few more lines to sing.

_I wanna love like you made me feel when we were 18_ , she sang, repeating it a few times over the last chords of the song. Before she could properly finish playing the last few notes, Harry leaned forward and pressed his mouth against hers. He kissed her so desperately that it made Liam a little light-headed even after he pulled away.

"How'd you know I was finished?" Liam asked, giggling a little when Harry kissed her again.

"I didn't," he admitted sheepishly. "Just hoped you were." Liam raised her eyebrows and Harry quickly backtracked, "not that I didn't love the song - because I _did_ \- I just really wanted to kiss you."

"Well, lucky for you, I was finished." Liam smiled as she let Harry pull her guitar from her arms and set it aside. He raised himself up on his knees and put his hands on her hips, pulling her closer as he kissed her. Liam threaded her hands through his hair and sighed softly against his mouth, giggling more when he started kissing her face.

Harry pulled her further forward, so much that she slipped off the stool she was sitting on and tumbled onto the floor on top of him. They both started laughing but Harry wouldn't let her get up.

"I quite like you like this," he murmured, making her blush.

"Stop it," Liam said as she tried to hide her face against Harry's shoulder.

"I will not," Harry insisted. "I fully intend to show you just how much I loved that song you wrote for me, and I'm not about to start by letting go of you." He rolled them over so Liam was flat on her back with Harry above her, staring down at her with lustful eyes.

"You really liked it?" she asked, gasping softly when Harry pressed his mouth to her throat and nipped at her skin with his teeth.

"I really, _really_ liked it," he answered as he pressed his hips down against Liam. She gasped again and Harry grinned against her neck. "Can't wait to tell everyone how talented my beautiful girlfriend is."

"Harry," Liam groaned. "Stop it."

"Nope. You'll see, one day we'll record it proper and everyone will fall in love with you just like I did." Harry kissed her nose and stared down at her, making sure she was looking back at him before he said, "but they'll just have to be jealous of our spectacular love story, because I'm not letting you go."

"Shut up and kiss me, Harry."

"Can do," Harry replied with a grin, leaning down to do just that.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning Liam wakes up to the sound of Niall puttering around his kitchen. The smell of freshly brewed tea fills the air and Liam sits up with a soft groan, rubbing her eyes as she turns around to face the kitchen. Niall freezes the moment their eyes meet and Liam can't help but laugh at the look on his face, with a half-eaten piece of toast shoved in his mouth and his hair sticking up in all directions.

"What?" Niall asks as he takes the toast out of his mouth and sets it down on a plate. "I didn't wake you, did I? I didn't even drop the kettle this morning, so I think today's going alright so far."

"You didn't wake me," Liam says, still laughing. "Nice hair."

Niall runs a hand through the mop on his head before he shrugs and puts the toast back in his mouth and picks up two steaming mugs. He makes his way towards Liam who quickly makes room for him next to her on the couch, taking one of the mugs out of his hands with a grateful smile.

"Sleep well?" he asks once he's finished eating his toast.

Liam shrugs as she takes a small sip of tea. "Well enough."

"I told you I'd give you the bed if you wanted, this couch--"

"No, it's not the couch," Liam gently interrupts. "Just had a weird dream, is all."

"D'you think dreams ever like, predict the future or anything?"

Liam gives Niall a strange look; it's far too early for him to be saying things like this.

"No, like," Niall laughs, "I'm not saying I believe it because like, half the time my dreams are about weird shit like me da turning into an alien or being able to fly. Not exactly the winning numbers for the National Lottery or anything."

"You've completely lost me," Liam says, smiling as she shakes her head and drinks more tea.

"Yeah, I dunno what I was saying either," Niall says, "but I have managed to make you both laugh and smile today so who cares, right?"

Liam ducks her head as she leans against Niall, fitting under his arm just as well as she always does. She lifts her mug and takes a long drink, enjoying the perfect temperature of her tea and the way it warms her from head to toe.

"Do you still wanna come with me today?" she asks quietly. "Think I'll call Louis in a bit, make sure he wasn't taking the piss or anything."

"Of course I'll come," Niall replies. "Maybe we'll get a free meal out of it, you never know."

"You think?" Liam hums. "Maybe if they decide to sign me, I dunno otherwise."

"Put it in your contract too," Niall laughs, "free meals on a regular basis."

"Gonna sound like a proper diva soon, what with all these demands in my contract."

"I'll keep you grounded, don't you worry."

Liam pulls away from him to give him a blank look, which Niall returns with a grin. She rolls her eyes a moment later and tucks herself against him again. A few minutes of silence pass by before Liam speaks up again, her voice a little more nervous than before.

"How early is too early to call, d'you think?"

Niall hums softly as he turns to check the time. "I'd be willing to bet that Louis has been waiting all night for you to call."

"He has not," Liam says with a frown. "He probably chatted up a bunch of other musicians and forgot all about me. Maybe I shouldn't even bother."

"Oh, now stop it. Don't put yourself down like that." Niall sets down his mug of tea and hugs Liam tightly.

"Sorry," Liam groans softly, "I know I keep doing that."

"You do." Niall sighs. "Think of it this way: if you call Louis and it was all bullshit, then at least you'll know. If you don't call him, you'll spend the rest of your life always wondering, won't you?"

"Maybe," Liam mumbles. "Probably."

Niall grins. "I knew you'd see it my way."

Liam avoids picking up her phone for another half an hour at least, shying away from Niall every time he tries to hand it to her. She knows it's a futile effort; it's only a matter of time before she ends up calling Louis but she wants to do it on her own terms.

Apparently Niall isn't willing to let her do it on her own terms, as he ends up barricading her in the toilet until she makes the call.

"Niall!" Liam shouts. "Let me out!"

"No!" he shouts back. Liam tries the door handle but it won't budge.

"What have you done to the door?"

"I'll let you out after you call Louis," Niall says, ignoring her question as he slides her phone through the crack under the door. Liam huffs as she picks it up, glaring at the door as though she could see Niall through the wood.

"You're an ass," she grumbles loud enough for Niall to hear. She waits a beat for Niall to respond but when he doesn't she turns away from the door and walks over to the toilet, putting the lid down so she can sit on it.

There's an unread text from Niall when she unlocks her phone and Liam stares at the notification in confusion for a moment before she opens it. She laughs once, loud and sharp, as she realizes he texted her Louis' phone number.

"You're welcome!" Niall shouts.

"You're still an ass!"

Liam waits another five minutes before she even presses Louis' number, hesitating even further when her phone prompts her to press call. It rings twice before a woman answers, greeting Liam and thanking her for calling before asking who to connect the call to. It takes Liam a moment to remember the company name that the woman said is the same one she read on Louis' card the night before, and she's startled when the woman repeats her question in a sharper voice.

"Sorry, hi. Sorry, um," Liam gulps, "I'd like to speak to Louis Tomlinson? Please?"

"May I ask who's calling?"

"Liam Payne," she answers, feeling timid. What if Louis won't take her call? What if he doesn't even remember her?

"One moment."

The line goes so quiet that for a moment Liam can't be sure whether she's been hung up on or not. Just as she starts contemplating hanging up herself, a familiar voice comes over the line with a tone that's a bit too smug for Liam's liking.

"Liam! I knew you'd call."

"You did not," Liam replies, frowning even though nobody can see it.

"Alright, no, I didn't. But I hoped you would!" Louis laughs. "And you did! So clearly, I did something right."

"Or my mate locked me in his bathroom until I called you," Liam says with a sigh.

"Did he?" Louis hums. "Sounds like something I'd do. Anyway, have you reconsidered coming in for an audition?"

"You never mentioned anything about an audition."

"Well, what d'you think? Would you want to come in for an audition?"

"What do you mean when you say audition? Who would I be playing for?"

"Me, obviously. Umm, also my boss and a couple other executives, possibly."

"They have time for me?" Liam clears her throat. "Like, I won't be interrupting or anything?"

"Liam, they want to see you. I sent them a bit of your stuff last night, and--"

"What? How did you--"

"I filmed a bit of your song, don't worry about it, the point is--" Louis takes a deep breath. "They want to hear your stuff, Liam. They want to hear _you_."

Liam pulls the phone away from her ear and takes a deep breath. It seems too good to be true; things like this don't just happen. Liam feels dizzy like the room is spinning around her and she can't make it stop. She spaces out for a few seconds, coming back into herself when she realizes Louis is calling her name.

"Sorry, I…" Liam exhales sharply and shakes her head. "Sorry."

"Though I lost you for a minute, there."

"Just had to take a second to think, is all."

"And?"

"And…" Liam takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. "Okay."

"Okay?" Louis laughs a little. "Okay, you'll do it?"

"Yeah. Tell me when and where, and I'll be there."

Liam half expects the door to fly open the moment she hangs up the phone. She knows Niall's been listening in as best he can, probably with his ear pressed to the door. Surprisingly, there's no noise on the other end after she tells Louis goodbye.

"Niall?" she calls, the smallest hint of hesitation in her voice. "Niall, are you there?"

The door swings open and Niall sticks his head inside. "You done?"

"Yeah, I--"

Liam pauses as Niall rushes in, dodging around her to head to the toilet. He glances over his shoulder and gives her an expectant look.

"Are you going to watch, or…?"

"Am I…" Liam grimaces and groans in disgust as she quickly slips out of the bathroom. "You could've said something!"

"You were on the phone!" Niall shouts back. "Be out in a minute."

Liam sits down on the couch to wait for Niall, turning her phone over again and again in her hand in a nervous habit. Part of her is absurdly excited for the audition later in the day but she's trying her best not to show it. The last thing she wants to do is get her hopes up for nothing.

"Well?" Niall asks when he comes out of the bathroom.

"Did you wash your hands?" Liam asks.

Niall rolls his eyes. "Yes, Mum." He sits down next to Liam and pats her knee. "Well? C'mon, what'd he say?"

Liam ducks her head for a moment, trying to school her expression into one of indifference when she looks back up at Niall.

"What're you doing around 2 o'clock?"

"Let's see," Niall hums, "tagging along when you sign your big, important record deal so I can say I was there when Liam Payne hit it big?"

"It's just an audition, Niall." Liam shakes her head. "But I hoped you'd come along."

"Said I would, didn't I?" Niall grins. "And they'll give you a deal, just you wait."

Liam smiles and laughs as Niall hugs her, already chattering away about the celebratory dinner they'll have later on. Liam listens as best she can, but her mind starts to wander, still wondering if this is a good idea. Her heart aches a little when she thinks about how if this had happened a month ago the first person she would've called would've been Harry.

She lets herself wonder, just for a moment, where he is and what he might be doing. That turns out to be a mistake because her mind immediately turns down the lane to wonder _who_ he's with, and that's a road Liam can't let herself go down.

"D'you think it'd be alright if I had a drink before?" she asks, swallowing nervously. "Y'know, to settle my nerves or whatever."

"Can't hurt. Promise I won't let you get pissed." Niall smiles at her before he gets up, asking what she'd prefer to have as he makes his way into the kitchen.

As Liam decides on whiskey, she doesn't let herself think about how that's the same drink that she and Harry shared when he got his record deal. Niall clinks his glass against hers and Liam pushes every thought of Harry out of her mind, letting herself be happy. Maybe this is how her life is supposed to go.

*

If Liam thought she was nervous before, it's nothing compared to how terrified she feels when she and Niall are standing outside of the building where Louis' record company is located. Liam grips Niall's arm tightly as they both stare up at the skyscraper. She wonders if he's just as scared as she is.

"Didn't think it'd be this… big." She gulps and looks at Niall who gives her a smile in return.

"Bet they're just showing off. Probably hundreds of empty offices inside, yeah?" He pats her hand.

"You're probably right." Liam looks back up at the building. "Still. They must have a bit of money if they can show off this much."

"Just a bit." Niall whistles. "How's about we make 'em part with some?"

"Yeah?" Liam smiles.

"Yeah, couple million or two, at least. To start." Niall nods his head towards the upper floors. "Make 'em have to rent those out."

Liam laughs. "Yeah, sounds good."

Niall pats Liam's arm where it's looped through his own and then takes the first step forward towards the enormous revolving glass door, giving Liam a small tug until she follows suit. It's a bit of a tight squeeze with the two of them and Liam's guitar case but they manage to make it out of there in one piece with only a minor stumble.

The lobby is even more intimidating than Liam expected it to be. Every surface seems to sparkle and quite literally everything Liam lays her eyes on looks so expensive that she's a little nervous just walking across the floor.

Niall pats her arm again as they both step up to the reception desk but the woman sitting behind it pays them absolutely no attention at all as she answers one phone call after another.

"Erm, excuse me?" Liam says softly. She clears her throat and speaks up a bit louder, "hello?"

The woman holds up one finger and the movement is so quick that Liam actually jumps.

"Can I help you?" she says a moment later as she closes her hand over the microphone of her headset. She looks about as unimpressed with Liam as can be but Liam refuses to let it bring her down.

"I'm here to meet with Louis Tomlinson," Liam says. She lets herself be proud for a moment that her voice didn't waver, but she falters when the woman stays silent for a beat longer than she expected.

"Down the hall, elevator on your left, fifteenth floor," the woman replies, letting go of her headset with one hand while the other points them in the right direction with a flick of her wrist.

"Cheers," Niall says but it's met with no reply at all; she simply goes back to answering the phone and ignores them entirely.

"Pleasant, wasn't she?" Liam murmurs once they're in front of the elevators, well out of earshot of the receptionist.

"D'you think they provide it for her or she brought it from home?" Niall asks as he presses the button for the elevator.

"Provide what?"

"The stick up her arse, of course!"

"Niall!" Liam chastises, snickering into her hand as the elevator dings and the doors open.

"What?" Niall replies, grinning at Liam as they step into the elevator.

"You're terrible." Liam shakes her head as she reaches out to press the button for the fifteenth floor. She takes a deep breath and holds it for a moment before letting it out slowly. She may have to keep reminding herself to breathe but at least her nerves are starting to subside.

Or at least, so she thinks until Niall grabs her hand and Liam realizes she's been twisting her fingers together over and over again.

"Here goes nothing, yeah?" Niall says, offering Liam a smile as the elevator dings to signal their arrival on the fifteenth floor.

"Yeah," Liam replies, exhaling another deep breath. "Here goes nothing."

Liam is half-expecting to see a flurry of movement once the doors open; for the office to be packed to the gills with other hopefuls with their instruments of choice, all playing over each other to create a deafening cacophony. Instead, they're met with a desk that looks nothing like the one in the downstairs lobby and a girl sitting behind it with a bright smile and even brighter blue hair.

"Hiya! How can I help you?" she asks before they've even stepped off the elevator.

"I'm, um," Liam pauses to clear her throat, "here to see Louis Tomlinson?"

"Ooh, okay!" The girl clicks a few things on her computer and Liam peeks at Niall who gives her a thumbs up in return. "Are you Liam?"

"Sorry?" Liam quickly turns back and flushes. "Oh, yes. I'm Liam. Liam Payne."

"Excellent! And is this your manager?"

"Niall?" Liam blinks. "He's… um… well, he's--"

"I'm her manager," Niall interrupts. "Manager, bodyguard, life coach, best friend… you get the gist." He gives the receptionist a broad smile and she laughs in return.

"Got it." She winks at both of them as she stands up and comes out from behind her desk. "Follow me, I'll set you up in one of the conference rooms and let them know you're here."

Liam and Niall follow her down the hallway, trying to keep up despite being distracted by all the photos and memorabilia on the walls from their roster of artists. It's fascinating and Niall stops to gawk at something more than once, meaning he has to jog to catch up to the other two once they reach the conference room.

"Would you like anything while you wait? Coffee, tea, water?" The receptionist smiles at Liam as she slips her guitar off of her shoulder and nervously takes a seat.

"I'm alright, thanks," she answers timidly.

"I wouldn't mind some tea, that'd be great!" Niall smiles widely.

"Coming right up!" She turns to Liam and smiles again. "If you change your mind, just let me know. My name's Jade."

"Nice to meet you," Liam says, awkwardly extending her hand to Jade. "And thanks."

"Of course," Jade replies as she shakes Liam's hand. "And good luck!"

Once the door closes behind her, Liam whips her head around and smacks Niall's arm.

"What was that for?" he groans as he rubs his arm.

"What was _that_?" Liam demands. "All that manager, life coach, whatever nonsense?"

"That was me thinking on my feet, thank you very much. Do you really think she would've let me in here if I said I was just along for the ride?"

Liam deflates. "Oh. Right."

"I said I'd be here for you and I meant it," Niall says as he grabs Liam's hand and squeezes it. "Whatever you need."

"Thanks," Liam says as she squeezes Niall's hand back. "You didn't have to flirt with Jade, though."

"I wasn't flirting! I was being nice!"

"I know your flirting face, that was it."

Niall rolls his eyes. "I don't have a flirting face."

"You do too." Liam laughs. "You--"

The door opens and startles Liam into silence as she turns to see who's coming into the room. She's expecting it to be Jade with Niall's tea but instead it's Louis followed by a tall man who Liam assumes to be Louis' boss and quite possibly the head of the entire label.

"Liam!" Louis crows brightly. "So glad you could make it."

"Hi," she says, nervously looking back and forth between Louis and the man standing behind him.

"Liam, this is Nicholas Grimshaw, my boss."

"Nick, please." He smiles as he reaches out to shake Liam's hand. "I've heard quite a bit about you from Louis."

"Oh?" Liam smiles nervously. "Thank you for having me in, I really appreciate the opportunity, and--"

"Relax, Liam," Louis interrupts. "No need to be nervous, right, Nicholas?"

" _Nick_ ," he repeats with a sigh. "Louis, I've told you--"

"Who's this?" Louis interrupts again, this time looking at Niall. "Wait a minute… I know you." He snaps his fingers. "You were at the pub last night!"

"Sure was," Niall replies as he stands up and shakes Louis' hand. "I'm Niall."

"Came along for the ride, eh?" Louis grins.

"Had to make sure you weren't taking advantage," Niall replies as he crosses his arms.

"Niall," Liam chastises softly.

"No, no, that's fair." Louis laughs. "Our meeting was unconventional, after all."

"You chatted her up in a pub, what were we supposed to think?"

"Niall!"

Louis barks out a laugh and even Nick finds the comment amusing, meanwhile Liam's cheeks are burning with embarrassment as she glares daggers at Niall.

"Why don't we get started?" Nick says as he takes a seat on Liam's other side while Louis sits down one seat over from him. "Tell me a little about yourself, Liam."

"Well, um," Liam gives Niall a nervous look before she turns back to Nick, "what do you want to know?"

"Where are you from? What's your story?" Nick gestures to Louis, "he tells me you write your own songs, so where do you get your inspiration from?"

Liam starts to panic a little. She didn't expect to be asked questions about her life, she just thought she'd come in and play her song and that would be it. She's struggling to figure out a way to begin when the door opens again and Jade peeks in.

"Sorry! The kettle was on the blink so it took a bit longer," she explains as she sets a cup of tea down next to Niall. "You're sure I can't get you anything?"

"I'm fine, really, thanks." Liam smiles at her.

"Ta, Jade," Louis says as she slips out of the door, closing it behind her.

Liam's mind reverts back to panic mode once the door is shut, but this time she's saved by someone else entirely: Louis.

"Why don't we have Liam play her song first?" he suggests as he looks at Nick. "You can tell a lot about a person from the music they play, yeah?"

"Alright, yeah." Nick turns and smiles at Liam. "Let's hear what you've got."

Liam doesn't let herself look up from her guitar once as she plays the same song she played in the pub the night before. She's afraid of what she might see on Nick's face; whether he'll show interest or disappointment in her music. She concentrates on the chord changes and getting each lyric right despite being under the scrutiny of three sets of eyes.

Niall claps loudly when she finishes and Louis joins in, the two of them making Liam blush while Nick sits still and looks contemplative. Liam carefully puts her guitar back in its case and folds her hands in her lap as she waits for Nick to say something. Louis watches Nick carefully as though he's waiting for some minute movement that will clue him in to whatever Nick's thinking.

"That was great, Liam. Thanks for coming in." Nick holds out his hand for Liam to shake again and she blinks in confusion before she takes it.

"Thank you?" Her eyes dart from Nick to Louis and then over to Niall, who stares back at her with the same level of confusion in his eyes.

"Louis, a word?" Nick nods towards the door and stands up. Liam looks to Louis as he gets up for something, _anything_ to tell her how this is going to play out.

"Just sit tight, yeah? I'll be back in a minute," he says. He sounds unsure of his own words and Liam's heart sinks. She waits until the door shuts behind them to turn to Niall with a frown.

"He didn't like it."

"You don't know that," Niall protests.

"He wouldn't have left otherwise, don't you think?" Liam sighs and shakes her head. "This was a mistake."

"D'you want some tea?" Niall says as he offers his half-drunk cup to Liam. "It's good!"

"No, thanks," Liam answers miserably. "Can we just go?"

"You don't want to wait for Louis to come back?"

"He probably won't come back." Liam picks up her guitar and stands up. "C'mon, you can flirt with Jade a little more before we go."

"I wasn't flirting!" Niall protests before he gulps down the rest of his tea and follows Liam to the door. They get halfway down the hallway towards the elevator before they hear Louis' voice shouting Liam's name. Liam almost continues walking but Niall catches her arm and gives her a pleading look.

"You never know," he whispers as Louis jogs up to them.

"Where you going?" he asks, breathless.

"What did Nick say?" Liam asks.

"Nick?" Louis clears his throat. "Well, he… you see, he--"

"I told you," Liam says to Niall. "He didn't like it."

"It's not that he didn't like it," Louis says quickly. "That's not it, what he said was--"

"It doesn't matter," Liam interrupts. "Really, Louis, it's okay. This was a nice idea, but I think I should just go home."

"Liam, c'mon, hear him out."

Liam can't quite believe that Niall's gone and switched sides on her. It works to Louis' advantage because while Liam is distracted with trying to come up with a reason as to why she can't stay, he blurts out his idea for Liam's next move.

"You should record an album with me!"

"What?" Liam asks. "You mean, Nick…?"

"No, not with Nick, not with the label, with _me_." Louis grins. "It'll be like recording a demo but even better because we'll do a whole bloody album!"

"How?" Liam scoffs in disbelief. "Recording studios cost money, I haven't got--"

"I've got equipment at my flat." Louis sighs a little when Liam gives him a distrusting look. "I told you I had an ear for arrangements, yeah? This is what I know, Liam. This is my life, this is what I live for. Let me help you."

"I don't know…" Liam looks at Niall. "What do you think?"

"Show us the equipment first," Niall says, "then Liam can decide for herself. And we'll know once and for all if you're just trying to get in her pants."

"Niall!"

"Trust me," Louis says with a laugh, "you'll see."


	4. Chapter 4

Liam and Niall end up at a coffee shop just down the street from the record company; it's packed with business types, people in fancy suits and smart dresses that make Liam feel even more out of place than before. Niall goes to the counter to get them drinks while Liam searches for a pair of seats, luckily finding two in a corner just as they're vacated. She slips her guitar off her shoulder and waits for Niall to pop up with their coffees, using the spare time to watch the people around her and make up stories for them in her head.

It's a good distraction from the worries floating around in her mind. Louis managed to talk them into meeting him at his flat once he was off work and even though she agreed to it Liam still can't decide if it's a good idea or not.

"Ten pounds for two coffees, you've got to be joking," Niall mutters as he strides up to Liam and passes her one of the coffees in his hand.

"What?" Liam gasps. "That's ridiculous."

"That's London," Niall replies with a shrug. "Anyway, drink up!"

Liam lifts the cup to her mouth but hesitates to drink it. Her worries have evolved from a shadow in her mind into something not sitting well in the pit of her stomach and her throat feels tight. She sets her coffee aside on the table next to her chair and takes a deep breath, and Niall reaches out to touch her knee.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Dunno," Liam says with a soft sob. "I feel… weird? Like, scared or something. I can't explain it."

"Oh, Li." Niall frowns and pulls her chair closer to his own so he can wrap his arms around her. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do, you know that, right?"

"I know, but…" Liam's bottom lip trembles as she tries to compose herself. She's not about to start crying in the middle of an overpriced coffee shop in downtown London. "He's just so, like, determined, y'know? It just… it's freaking me out."

"He's passionate," Niall says with a soft laugh. "Isn't that a good thing?"

"Hang on," Liam says as she pulls away from Niall, "you're the one who was giving him shit about wanting to get in my pants not half an hour ago, and now you're on his side??"

"No, I'm not--" Niall sighs, "it's not about sides, and I'll admit it is a bit weird that he's so hellbent on recording your songs but… like…"

"What if he wants to steal them?" Liam interrupts. "What if he wants to take my songs and give them to someone else?"

"Well, one, that's illegal, innit? They're _your_ songs, Li. Nobody can do anything with them if you don't want them to. And two…" Niall clears his throat. "Well, I'll be honest, I didn't have a two. But the point is that you're in charge, yeah?"

"What if I'm not good enough?" Liam asks, barely above a whisper.

"Hey, now," Niall says as he pinches her arm, "stop that. Stop putting yourself down and thinking you're not good enough. You _are_ good enough, you're _more_ than good enough, alright?"

"Niall--"

"No, you listen to me: you're not nothing, alright? You are strong and wonderful and literally everyone on this planet should be so lucky to know you. Anyone with eyes can see that you're talented so really, it's no wonder why Louis wants to work with you so badly. Liam, you pour your heart into everything that you do and that's what makes you _you_."

Liam stares blankly at Niall, completely taken aback by everything he just said. She doesn't know where to begin when it comes to a response so she stays silent as she tries to process it all. Niall, of course, grows a bit antsy in the time it takes Liam to do that and he ends up cradling his head in his hands with an uneasy groan.

"That was too much, wasn't it? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--"

Liam grabs Niall and pulls him into a tight hug, squeezing him so hard that he gasps a little from the force of her arms.

"Sorry, sorry!" she apologizes as she loosens her grip a little while still keeping her arms around him. "I just… wanted to say thank you. And… I'm sorry I've been so weird lately."

"You haven't been weird--"

"No, I have, and I know it." Liam sighs and drops her arms from around Niall, slumping back against her seat. "My head's all weird and I feel like I don't know who I am anymore and I just…" She sighs again. "I hate it. I don't like feeling like I'm not myself."

"You're still you," Niall says in a careful tone. "Nobody can take that away, not even--"

"I know," Liam interrupts. She knows where Niall was going with that thought and while it's exactly what she was thinking, she doesn't need to hear it aloud. "I know that, I do. It's just hard sometimes, y'know. To actually believe it."

"That's why you've got me to remind you." Niall grins, wide and exaggerated just to get Liam to smile back. It works so quickly that Liam doesn't even realize she's smiling at first, but when she does she leans in for another hug.

Their hug is interrupted by Liam's phone buzzing in her pocket and when she pulls it out she finds a text from Louis.

"He's finished early," she tells Niall, "and he's asking us to meet him back at the office."

"D'you still want to?" Niall asks. Liam looks at him and takes a moment to think. "Say the word and we'll blow him off and go back home. Make some proper tea or get drunk off of that whiskey in my cupboard."

Liam laughs. "Maybe later, Nialler. Might as well see if Louis lives up to his word, yeah?"

"That's the spirit!" Niall claps his hands together as he stands up, leaving his coffee on the table. Liam looks down at it with a frown as she gets up, her own coffee in her hand.

"Don't you want that?"

"Nah, it's shit anyway." Niall rolls his eyes. "Dunno how they get people to come back, charging that much for shit coffee."

Liam frowns harder as she looks down at her own coffee. She ends up tossing it into the bin as they leave and hitches her guitar up higher onto her shoulder before she loops her arm with Niall's.

"Remind me to pay you back for that shit coffee."

"You can pay me back when you're making millions off your fancy record."

Liam rolls her eyes and joins in when Niall laughs. She finds it truly amazing how Niall can make her feel better with just a laugh. The only downside is that it sometimes reminds her of Harry, who used to do anything just to make her laugh. She couldn't even possibly count the number of times she'd caught Harry giving her a ridiculous look, holding the expression for however long it took Liam to look at him. It's a fond memory that makes her smile even though it stings to think of Harry.

Louis is waiting in the lobby of the building when Niall and Liam enter, quickly turning them around and back out the door as soon as he spots them.

"Off we go!" Louis says as he starts herding the two of them towards the nearest tube station. "Lots to do!"

"How far is your flat?" Liam asks later, when they're squished up against each other and several other people in the packed train.

"Four stops on this line, then we switch and another two stops after that." Louis hums and tilts his head. "And then only like, six blocks walking. We'll be there in no time."

"Y'sure you don't live in Scotland?" Niall grumbles as he twists his body to avoid getting elbowed.

"It's not that bad," Louis says, frowning. "And it'll be well worth it, I promise. You'll see."

Liam keeps her mouth shut for the remainder of the journey to Louis' flat, mostly because Niall and Louis talk enough that she probably couldn't be able to get a word in edgewise if she'd tried. Niall asks one question after another about Louis' background in the industry, apparently trying to get as much information about Louis' career as he can. What begins as an interrogation quickly turns into Louis telling Niall all sorts of stories from the time he's spent in recording studios with all sorts of artists, and Liam finds it rather amusing how starry-eyed Niall gets the longer Louis goes on.

"Here we are!" Louis says, cutting himself off in the middle of one of his own stories as he comes to a full stop in front of a building. Liam looks up and glances around; she's thankful Louis knew where they were going because literally every house in the neighborhood looks the same to her.

Once the front door is open Louis leads them up the stairs of the duplex and goes to work unlocking his own door which has no less than six different locks on it. Liam and Niall share a worrisome look between themselves before Liam clears her throat.

"Is… there a lot of crime in this neighborhood?" Liam asks carefully.

"What?" Louis looks up from the fourth lock. "Oh, no, not really. It's just… well," he chuckles. "Like I said, you'll see."

Once he's unlocked everything Louis pushes the door open and ushers the two of them inside. Liam glances around as Louis goes about re-locking the door and as far as she can tell, Louis' flat looks entirely normal.

"Alright," Louis says as he steps further inside the flat, "follow me."

Liam goes first, following Louis down the hallway to their left. They pass by the loo and a bedroom that's a bit of a tip, so much that Louis quickly grabs the door to close it and laughs awkwardly.

"Sorry about that, haven't tidied in a while." He clears his throat. "This way, c'mon."

Louis goes to the end of the hall and opens a door to what Liam assumes to be another bedroom but as soon as she steps through the doorway she understands why Louis said it'd be worth it.

"Jesus fucking Christ," Niall says, whistling when he follows Liam inside.

"I tried to tell you," Louis replies.

Liam can hardly believe her eyes; Louis has fully transformed his spare room into his own at-home recording studio. A dozen or more instruments are lined up against the far wall alongside several different stands with varying microphones attached and a drumset sits in the corner.

"This is incredible," Liam says as she stares in awe at the room at large, her eyes darting around to every surface to try and take in everything at once. "Can I?"

"Yeah, go ahead." Louis smiles.

Liam slips her guitar off of her shoulder and carefully sets it down before she steps forward to take a closer look at his instruments while Niall heads for the soundboard (which is less like a proper soundboard and more like an amalgamation of several different pieces of equipment all connected to an iMac) and immediately starts asking questions. The sound of their voices fades into the background as Liam admires the array of instruments before her, softly laughing in amusement at the fact that Louis even has a fucking banjo.

Her laughter disappears almost immediately when she spots a guitar at the end of the row and she recognizes the style. It's the same type that Harry used to play back when they lived in Birmingham. It's the same guitar that he used to write all of his songs on, and what he used to serenade Liam with every chance he got.

Liam swallows hard, the lump in her throat making it hard for her to breathe as she hesitantly reaches out to touch it. Her hand shakes before she even touches the neck and she quickly pulls her arm back and turns around to see both Niall and Louis watching her with careful eyes.

"You okay, Li?" Niall asks.

"I think…" Liam says, her shaky voice catching on a sob, "maybe this was a bad idea."

"What?" Louis blinks in confusion. "Liam, what're you--"

"I'm sorry, I can't-- I've got to go."

"Liam, wait!"

She grabs her own guitar and tries to make a break for the front door but Niall catches her in a hug, whispering soothing words to her as she starts crying against his shoulder. She apologizes over and over, hating herself for having this sort of reaction to a bloody guitar for chrissakes, but Niall just holds her and tries his best to comfort her.

"Okay," Louis starts carefully, "I must be missing something here, yeah?"

"D'you wanna tell him?" Niall asks softly. Liam looks at him and he gives her a small smile. "It's up to you, we can go if you want."

Liam turns to look at Louis and takes a deep breath, wiping her eyes before she speaks. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay?" Louis laughs nervously. "I don't know what to say, I've never had someone have that reaction to that room before."

"It wasn't the room, I'm sorry, it's just…" Liam takes another deep breath and lets it out slowly. "There's a guitar in there that's, um, it reminds me of someone."

"Oh." Louis nods and lets out a breath. "I get it."

"It's just… my songs, they're-- I wrote them about that… someone." Liam sighs, already frustrated with herself over how this is all coming out. "And I just can't help but wonder, like, if I get this bloody emotional over a stupid guitar then how am I ever going to record an entire album about him?"

"It's good that you're emotional! It means that what you're feeling is real and it's valid and when people listen to your songs they're going to go, 'shit, I know _exactly_ what she's going through,' because it's going to come through _that_ much better in your music!" Louis laughs and shakes his head. "That's what this is all about, innit? Everyone loves a song that reaches into you and grabs your heart and twists it and makes everything hurt like you're the one who's been wronged."

"But what if--"

"Just…" Louis interrupts, "think of it being cathartic, y'know? Think of it as, like, therapy. Pour every emotion, every feeling you've got in your head and in your heart into every song and it'll be fucking incredible, I know it will." Louis lets out a breath and runs his hand through his hair. "It all has to be worth something, right? Like, all the pain and misery and shit, it has to happen for a reason."

"Now I feel like I'm missing something," Niall says after a pause.

"It's nothing," Louis says as he shakes his head, "not important. What _is_ important is--"

"No, wait," Liam pulls away from Niall and takes a cautious step towards Louis, "did someone hurt you too?"

"This isn't about me," Louis says with an awkward laugh, "this is about _you_ and your songs and--"

"But you get it, you said so yourself, what happened to make you get it?"

"It doesn't matter what happened to me, what matters is--"

"It does matter, Louis, I--"

"It was me!" Louis shouts. They're all quiet for a moment as he catches his breath and his shoulders slump. "I hurt someone, alright? They're hurt because of me, because of all this," he says as he gestures haphazardly towards the recording studio. "I thought I could do it all; give all of myself to someone and my work but clearly…" Louis laughs humorlessly.

"Louis…" Liam says, her voice sympathetic. Louis shakes his head quickly and puts on a smile.

"Gotta keep going, yeah? If one part of your life falls apart it just means you've got to more time to focus on the others." He drops his gaze to the floor. "It's gotta be worth it."

Liam offers Louis a smile and reaches out to place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Louis looks up and returns Liam's smile, while behind them Niall clears his throat.

"Plenty more fish in the sea," he says. "Y'know, except for Liam. She's not a fish in your sea, just so we're clear."

"Niall!" Liam says, trying to sound exasperated and stern but she can't help but laugh.

"It's alright," Louis says in an amused tone. "He's right, after all. Niall's more my kind of fish, anyway."

Liam's eyes go wide and she stifles another laugh as she whips around to look at Niall for his reaction. His face is bright red and he's staring at Louis with a shocked expression.

"Fuck," he says succinctly.

"That answers that question, yeah?" Louis says with a grin.

"That it does," Niall replies as he ducks his head and mutters under his breath, "picked a whole fuckin' bouquet of whoopsie-daisies, didn't you, Niall."

"So," Louis says, taking attention away from Niall as he looks Liam in the eye, "are we doing this?"

Liam glances at Niall for a moment, needing just one look of validation before she can turn back and face Louis. There's no doubt that something has changed in the last twenty minutes, something to make Liam lose every worry and fear she had about making this album, and she can see it in Louis' eyes.

"Yeah," she says with a smile, "let's do this."

Hours are spent at Louis' flat that night, looking at equipment and sharing ideas for the arrangement of Liam's songs. Liam isn't surprised that Louis is as good as he said, but it still surprises her that he seems to know exactly what she's thinking before she even has the chance to say anything. Niall chimes in with his suggestions once in a while but most of the time he's perfectly content playing random instruments in the background as Liam and Louis talk.

"Which song do you want to start with first?" Louis asks as he shuffles through the stack of lyric sheets that Liam brought along.

"I dunno," Liam says, laughing a little as she glances around the room, "getting a bit late, isn't it?"

"Is it?" Louis checks his watch and laughs loudly. "Shit, it's past midnight. I had no idea."

"How friendly are you with your downstairs neighbors?" Niall asks as he spins around in his chair, strumming absentmindedly on the guitar in his hands.

"We're… neighborly." Louis shrugs. "Seems like a nice enough couple, I dunno. Why?"

"I'm only wondering if they'll call the cops on us if we start recording now, y'know." Niall grins. "Sirens could make for an interesting backing track, though."

"Niall," Liam chastises, "stop that."

"What? I'm just saying."

"We're not even ready to start recording, are we?" Liam asks as she turns back to Louis. He stares back at her with a perplexed expression and she frowns. "Are we?"

"Why wouldn't we be?" Louis gestures around the room. "We've got everything we need, haven't we?"

"We can't record a whole album with just the three of us, that'd take ages!"

"So what you're saying is, we need more people?"

"Yes!" Liam blinks. "Wait, what? Can we do that?"

"Of course we can!" Louis scoffs, as if Liam's being daft.

"Won't they want to get paid, though?"

Louis pauses for a moment as the thought sinks in. Barely a moment passes before he's grinning again, the panic in his expression disappearing immediately.

"I've got a plan. Give me ten minutes."

Louis gets up, pulling his phone out of his pocket as he exits the room and leaves Liam and Niall by themselves. Liam lets out a long breath and looks over at Niall, who's still spinning around in his chair.

"You're going to make yourself sick."

"Haven't yet, probably won't," Niall says as he continues to spin.

Liam rolls her eyes, waiting a minute before she asks, "d'you think it'll work?"

"What?"

"Getting musicians without being able to pay them."

"You mean I'm not getting paid?" Niall groans loudly. "What am I even doing here??"

Liam grabs a nearby pen and lobs it at Niall's head, smiling in spite of herself as he laughs and dodges it.

"You know I'm kidding, Li. 'm sure Louis has tons of musician friends who'd be willing to help out. You'll see."

"I feel bad, though." Liam frowns. "They should be getting paid for the work they do."

"So pay 'em back when you sell a million copies of this album," Niall replies.

Liam laughs softly. "You never give up, do you?"

Niall comes to a stop in front of Liam and grins at her. "Haven't yet," he says, the grin never fading as he goes back to spinning the chair around.

Louis comes back into the room a while later with a pleased look on his face and a bounce in his step. Liam eyes him warily as he walks over and sits back down next to her, looking very proud of himself.

"Well?"

"You two should go home and get some rest," Louis says. "We've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Wait, what? What does that mean? Did you find someone?"

"Four someone's," Louis replies with a grin. "They'll be over tomorrow at ten, which means you need to get a good night's sleep so you're all ready to go!"

"This is you politely kicking us out, innit?" Niall says as he sets the guitar down and stands up. Liam stifles a laugh when he sways a bit on his feet and Louis continues to grin.

"Get home safe. Lots to do in the morning."


	5. Chapter 5

Liam's already awake when Niall shuffles into his kitchen bright and early the next morning, yawning and stretching as he puts the kettle on. She sits up and slides off the couch to follow him into the kitchen to help make a bit of breakfast before they head off to Louis' flat for who knows how long.

"How'd you sleep?" Niall asks with a sleepy smile.

"Alright," Liam answers although the truth is she hardly slept a wink. She figures she must've fallen asleep at some point in the wee hours of the morning because she doesn't feel as exhausted as she probably should. Just like it had the night before her mind races with curiosity revolving around the mystery band that Louis put together.

It's incredible how one night can make Liam go from being uncertain about recording her own album to worrying how she's going to recover if it doesn't work out. Without realizing she was doing it Liam somehow managed to put all of her hopes and dreams into this and there's just no telling how it's going to end.

"Excited?" Niall asks as he pours hot water into a couple of mugs for them.

Liam wrinkles her nose. "Nah," she says as she shakes her head.

"Good, me neither," Niall replies as he wrinkles his nose in return. "Probably won't be any fun, recording an album."

Liam can't keep up with the joke for more than another few seconds before she bursts into giggles and leans into Niall's side.

"I can't believe it's actually happening, y'know?"

"It'll be great." Niall presses a kiss to her temple. "You'll be great."

"Thanks," Liam whispers.

"And I know _I'll_ be great," Niall goes on, "Louis knows I'll be great, so what're you even worried about?"

Liam rolls her eyes as Niall leaves the kitchen with a mug in his hands and a spring in his step.

"C'mon, get dressed! It's bad luck to be late!"

"Is it?"

Niall spins around on his heel and shrugs. "Dunno, but sounds true, doesn't it?"

Liam shakes her head and waves Niall off into his room to get ready. It takes Liam a couple minutes to pull her thoughts together well enough to get ready herself, but before she can really sink into the bottomless pit of worry inside her mind they're off to Louis' flat.

"Good thing I got paid yesterday," Niall says halfway through their tube ride. "Bit expensive, going from one end of the city to the other."

"Oh, god," Liam says as she turns to Niall, "didn't you have work yesterday? Did I make you miss it?"

"It's fine, don't worry." Niall pats her hand. "I've got it all covered."

"But--"

"Liam," Niall says, patient but firm, "seriously. It's okay."

"I didn't even think about it," Liam murmurs. "I'm a terrible friend."

"Oh, now stop it. If I'd absolutely needed to go into work yesterday, I would've." Niall leans in to whisper, "besides, you'll pay me back when you hit it big."

"You're an idiot," Liam says, fighting a smile.

"Maybe." Niall shrugs. "But I'm an idiot who believes in you."

Liam lets herself smile widely at that and loops her arm through Niall's, holding it close as she rests her head on Niall's shoulder. They're quiet through the rest of their ride, holding onto each other as they make their way through the bustle of people heading in all sorts of directions on a Saturday morning.

"Who d'you think Louis got to come record with us?" Niall asks.

"Dunno," Liam replies, "could be anyone, I suppose."

"Maybe he got Ed Sheeran," Niall teases. "Since they're all buddy-buddy and whatnot."

"Yeah, in your dreams. They're probably just like, a couple of his mates who can play drums and stuff. I'll probably be the only girl, you watch and see."

"You never know," Niall says as they climb the steps up to Louis' front door. "He could've gotten girls, too."

"Maybe." Liam rings the bell and the door buzzes a few seconds later, letting them inside to get up to the second floor. Louis opens the door to his flat as they're climbing the stairs and smiles widely at them.

"Good! You're early."

"Are we?" Liam asks as she checks the time on her phone. "You said ten, right?"

"Yeah, but you got here before they did, so: you're early." Louis steps aside to let them in and instead of heading to the recording studio like Liam assumed he would, he leads them into the kitchen instead.

There's all manner of pastries spread out on his kitchen table, certainly enough to feed a small army even and Liam starts to wonder if Louis is expecting more people than he told them about last night.

"D'you guys want some tea? I just put a fresh kettle on."

"Ooh, me!" Niall raises his hand and quickly drops it. "I mean… yeah, that'd be great."

"Help yourself to the spread," Louis says as he starts taking mugs out of his cupboard. "I didn't know what you two liked, so I got a bit of everything."

"I see that," Liam remarks as she takes a step closer to the table and looks at all of the different options. Niall reaches out and grabs a profiterole, humming in satisfaction after he takes his first bite.

"Fuck, that's good." He finishes the rest in two bites and quickly goes for something else while Liam just stands by, her stomach suddenly feeling twisty and strange.

"Not hungry?" Louis asks as he hands her a mug full of tea.

"Not really," Liam answers. "Bit nervous, actually."

"Ah, well, that's to be expected." Louis smiles warmly. "Don't worry too much, it's all on your terms. Nobody expects you to do more than you're able."

Liam gives him a grateful smile in return and just as she's about to ask about the other musicians, the door buzzer sounds loudly from the front door and Louis excuses himself to answer it. Liam turns to look at Niall, who's still making his way through each variety of pastry laid out in front of them.

"What?" he asks, his mouth full of what appears to be an apple turnover.

"You're disgusting," Liam replies with a laugh as she takes a sip of her tea.

A gaggle of voices erupt from the hallway and Liam turns around to see Louis coming back into the kitchen with four people following. It takes Liam a moment to realize that they're all girls and she feels her heart swell with hope.

"Ladies! This is Liam and that's… Niall."

Liam turns around at Louis' hesitation and finds that Niall's got his mouth full and a glob of jam smudged on his cheek. She's about to reach over and hand him a napkin when someone beats her to it, someone with bright blue hair.

"There you go," Jade says as she wipes the jam off Niall's face and smiles at him. "Ooh, profiteroles!"

Louis laughs and Liam turns back around. "Well, you two met Jade yesterday so that's done. Liam, meet Perrie, Jesy, and Leigh-Anne."

"Hi," they all chorus together and Liam waves in return.

"Jade told us all about you," Leigh-Anne says as she steps forward and gives Liam a hug. "This is going to be fantastic, innit?"

"Honestly, as soon as Louis told us about you and your album, it was a no-brainer," Perrie says, hugging Liam as well.

"What did he say?" Liam asks as she tries to give Louis a suspicious look, but he's actively avoiding her gaze.

"He told us that you had your heart broken," Jesy says as she takes Liam's hand and squeezes it, "which is something all of us have been through and music helped every one of us get over it."

"Us girls gotta stick together," Perrie adds. "Right, Jade?"

"What?" Jade says, her mouth full of profiterole. The other three girls all start snickering as Jade shrugs and goes back to eating.

"She wouldn't shut up about Niall," Leigh-Anne says in a whisper as she leans in to Liam. "Perfect match, it seems."

"Absolutely," Liam replies as she sneaks a look at the pair of them as they're both picking out different pastries to try. It's an utterly ridiculous sight and it makes Liam's heart swell even more.

"Shall we get started?" Louis asks.

Everyone looks to Liam and the realization hits that this is her decision. She looks around at all the faces staring at her and she laughs nervously.

"Yes?" she says, trying her best to keep her voice from shaking. The girls around her coo and wrap her up in a hug, each one telling her not to worry and it'll be great.

"If anyone's nervous, should be us," Leigh-Anne says with a laugh. "We're the ones who have to learn your songs!"

"You'll all be brilliant," Louis says as he starts herding them all out of the kitchen and towards the studio. Niall grabs Liam's hand before she follows the others and squeezes it, which Liam is thankful for until she realizes that there's something on Niall's hand.

"What the-- is this jam?!"

"Good luck jam," Niall replies with a grin. Liam grimaces and tries to wipe her hand on Niall's arm, settling for a napkin when he dodges out of her reach.

"You're disgusting," Liam says, laughing as she follows him into the next room.

The girls have spread out around the studio by the time Liam comes in: Jesy is sitting behind the drumkit, testing out the setup and adjusting as she sees fit, while Jade is standing at the keyboard and playing various little tunes as she messes with the volume level. Leigh-Anne is busy tuning a bass guitar, bobbing her head to the beat as she plays. Liam is surprised to see Perrie with a violin in her hands, held close to her ear as she turns the pegs so slowly that Liam hardly sees her fingers move.

"Dunno if we'll need that yet, Pez," Louis says as he fiddles with buttons on the sound board.

"No harm in being ready," Perrie replies as she gives Louis a look with her eyebrow cocked.

"I've always wanted to play the violin," Liam says as she takes a seat near Perrie as she pulls her guitar out of its case.

"Once you get past the awful screeching phase, it's lovely." Perrie smiles widely. "I've been playing since I was little, though, so now I only screech when I want to."

"That violin isn't the only thing she makes screech," Jade says in a low voice, winking at Liam and nodding her head towards Jesy.

"Oi, shut up!" Perrie shouts. "Keep to your keys, missy."

Jade grins as she plays something Liam's never heard before but it sounds lovely and it ends with a flourish that absolutely deserves applause.

"You're good with your hands," Niall says, probably meaning for it to come out a lot softer than it does and definitely not expecting the reaction he gets.

Jesy barely stifles her laughter as she plays a percussive sting ( _ba dum tss_ ), smirking at both Niall and Jade as the rest of the room erupts in laughter.

"I didn't mean it like _that_ ," Niall mumbles as his cheeks turn bright red. "I'm just gonna…" he heads over towards Louis, intending to sit down next to him and stay out of trouble.

"Oi, your hands better be clean," Louis says. "No jam or nothing on my equipment, alright?"

"It's good luck jam," Liam teases, turning around to smile at Niall. "Right?"

"What the f-- y'know what, I don't want to know." Louis shakes his head. "Let's just get started and forget all about Niall's weird jam fixation."

"I don't--"

" _Liam_ ," Louis says, interrupting Niall's protest, "why don't we start with the one we were working on last night?" He stands up and collects his notes from the night before and starts passing out copies to the others.

"What's all this?" Liam asks as Louis hands her a copy of her own.

"It's your music," Louis replies with a smile.

"But…" Liam stares at the page before her, "how did you--"

"I wrote down all of your ideas and tinkered with them a bit after you left. How about we run through it a few times and you can tell us if we should change anything?"

The girls all voice their agreement and Louis walks over to Jesy to discuss drum beats while Liam continues staring down at the sheet music in her hands. Niall scoots his chair over next to hers and peers at it over her shoulder, startling Liam a little when he hums in her ear.

"Sorry," he laughs, "didn't mean to scare you."

"S'alright." Liam passes the top page to Niall and shakes her head. "This is incredible."

"'Course it is, you wrote it."

"No, I mean-- like, this is exactly what I had in my head. How'd he do that?"

Niall shrugs. "He's just that good, I guess."

It's a matter of just a few short hours before they're ready for the first proper run-through of Liam's song. They've played certain parts of it over and over a hundred times to perfect certain notes and changes, and Liam's getting a bit antsy to hear the whole thing even if she's a tad nervous about getting it one hundred percent right.

"No pressure, yeah?" Jade says as she cracks her knuckles.

"We've got this," Leigh-Anne scoffs, smiling widely at Liam as she wiggles her eyebrows.

"Alright, Liam." Louis clears his throat. "Whenever you're ready."

Liam takes a deep breath, closing her eyes for a second before she opens them and nods at Jade to start. Her eyes dart over to Jesy and they both start bobbing their head in time, getting in sync so Jesy hits her first beat at the same time that Liam starts singing, _who's gonna be the first one to start the fight? Who's gonna be the first one to fall asleep at night?_

Unlike during open mic night at the pub and in Louis' office yesterday, Liam doesn't feel nervous at all singing in front of the other girls. She hardly even registers Louis and Niall sitting behind her as she glances from one friendly face to another, each one of them smiling back at her. _Who's gonna be the last one to drive away? Who's gonna be the last one to forget this place?_

There's a sense of camaraderie with these girls even though she's only known them for a few hours; they make Liam feel so comfortable that it's like they've been friends for ages. _We keep taking turns, will we ever learn?_ It's enough to make her forget how upset she felt when she wrote the lyrics she's singing; how hurt and broken she'd been after leaving Harry.

_Oh, spaces between us_ \- as Liam sings she's joined by Perrie and Leigh-Anne for a harmony that sounds absolutely stunning. Liam nearly forgets to sing the next part because she had no idea they could sing, let alone sing so well - _keep getting deeper, it's harder to reach you even though I try_.

Perrie flushes a little and Leigh-Anne just smiles widely and drops her gaze back down to her bass as Liam stares at them both in awe. _Spaces between us_ \- this time Jade and Jesy join in for the harmony and Liam feels like she may actually cry from joy just listening to their voices - _leaving us speechless and I don't know why_.

Liam takes a deep breath, shaking her head and smiling at all four of them as she sings the last line, _who's gonna be the first to say goodbye?_

"Well…" Louis says, clearing his throat after the room falls into silence. "That was…"

"I'm sorry!" Perrie says quickly, standing up and rushing over to Liam. "We weren't trying to steal your thunder or anything, I just--"

"Are you kidding?" Liam laughs as she wraps her arms around Perrie and hugs her tightly. "That was amazing! Why didn't any of you say you could sing??"

"You didn't ask," Jesy replies with a wink and a smirk.

"Fair point," Niall murmurs.

"You've got to sing on the track, haven't they?" Liam turns and looks at Louis who shrugs his shoulders.

"Up to you, innit?"

"You will, won't you?" Liam asks earnestly.

"Oh my god, say yes before she faints," Jade says with a burst of giggles.

"Alright, that's settled." Louis claps his hands together. "What d'you say, one more take and then we do it for real?"

Liam can't stop beaming as she sits back down, now feeling so excited she could actually burst. _This might actually work out_ , she thinks to herself. She's finally done away with the voice in the back of her head that says this is a terrible idea and it's an utter relief. Maybe Louis was right; maybe this is exactly what she needed to get over Harry.

*

It's getting later on in the evening by the time they've finished recording a second song for the album. Liam's listened to the playback of both songs a hundred times over already and Niall has to physically pull her out of the recording studio so she'll have something to eat. She sits down in Louis' living room with everyone else with a sheepish smile as she's handed a container of Chinese food by Niall.

"Glad you finally joined us," Jesy says with a teasing smile.

"Sorry," Liam replies as she blushes a little. "This is just all so exciting, I can't believe it's really happening."

"You're so cute," Perrie laughs as she scoots closer to Liam and puts her arm around her. "Where did Louis even find you?"

"She came into the office yesterday," Jade says, "I knew Louis wouldn't let her get away."

"Can't blame me for that," Louis replies, "you'd've done the same thing if you heard her singing in the pub."

"I don't doubt it." Jade shakes her head as she checks her watch. "Oi, Lou, aren't you supposed to go to that thing tonight?"

"What thing?" Liam asks as everyone turns to look at Louis. He stares at Jade for a moment before a look of realization crosses his face and he groans.

"God, no, don't remind me. Nick ignores me enough at the office, why would I go to a bloody party to endure the same thing?"

"A party?" Leigh-Anne says excitedly. "What sort of party?"

"It's nothing--"

" _Everyone_ was talking about it," Jade interrupts, talking over Louis as she starts telling the others how many important people in the music industry were going.

"And you _don't_ want to go?" Perrie asks, turning back to Louis. "Are you mental?"

"I'm seriously regretting having you over, Jade." Louis shakes his head as he mock-glares at her. Jade doesn't appear to care judging from the smile on her face and the way she shrugs as she continues looking very pleased with herself.

"You should go," Jesy says. She points to Liam and adds, "and you should take Liam."

"What?" Liam blurts out, but it's lost amongst the outbursts from the other girls, all shouting their agreement at once.

"Yes!" Leigh-Anne shouts, "that'd be so good for her! Think of all the connections she could make!"

"Seriously, Louis, you'd be doing her a disservice if you didn't take her," Perrie says matter-of-factly.

"Yeah," Jade adds, "do you really want to ruin Liam's career before it even starts?"

"Shit, aim for my heart, why don't you?" Louis laughs. He turns to Liam and raises his eyebrows. "What d'you think?"

Liam stares at him wide-eyed, entirely stunned by the whole exchange that's just taken place. She immediately looks at Niall who's staring back at her with the same look, obviously just as taken aback by all of this as she is.

"I… yes?" Liam answers slowly as she darts her eyes around the room, looking at every single one of the girls before she looks at Louis again. "It could be fun, yeah?"

Louis tilts his head and lets out a disbelieving laugh, "I guess it's settled, then."

The girls burst into cheers that quickly evolve into overlapping excited chatter about how much fun Liam's going to have and how this will be absolutely perfect for her. Liam nods and smiles along as they keep talking until a thought crosses her mind that she can't keep quiet.

"What about all of you?" she asks with a frown. "What will you do?"

"Are you kidding?" Leigh-Anne laughs. "We've got tons of work to do here."

"She's right," Jesy agrees, "we've got to learn the rest of your songs!"

"Hang on, if you think I'm leaving the lot of you here by yourselves you've got another thing coming." Louis shakes his head firmly. "Absolutely not, not with Mr. Jam Hands over there."

"Hey!" Niall protests loudly. "I haven't got jam on my hands."

"Not anymore," Perrie mutters.

"Still," Louis continues, "there's no telling what trouble you lot could get into if left to your own devices with all that fancy and _expensive_ equipment."

"Alright, Mr. Fancy Pants, we get it," Jade hums, "we'll just find somewhere else to practice, then."

"You could all come to mine," Niall suggests, turning beet red when everyone looks at him. "It's small but my neighbors don't give a shit what I do so we could play all night."

"Your flat, eh?" Jesy says. Liam watches as Jesy and Perrie share a look that's then shared by Leigh-Anne as well until Jade huffs loudly.

"Shut up, all of you."

"We didn't say anything!" Leigh-Anne replies, though the giggles that escape as she says it tell an entirely different story.

"We'd love to come over to your flat, wouldn't we, Jade?" Perrie says, smiling sweetly at her.

"Watch it," Jade says as she shakes a warning finger at Perrie before she turns to Niall and smiles. "You didn't have to offer, y'know."

Niall shrugs. "I wanted to."

Liam can't control her own giggles this time and soon she's joined in by literally everyone else in the room apart from Niall and Jade, who just give them all very unimpressed looks.

"Shut up," Niall says as he flicks Liam's knee. "Go off to your fancy party already."

"Wait, is it fancy?" Liam asks. "Like, should I be wearing something different?"

Liam's never felt so scrutinized until all eyes are on her clothing: a red henley that's probably seen better days, a pair of dark blue jeans, and her trainers that most certainly are not party-worthy.

"Louis, d'you think you've got a suit jacket that Liam could borrow?" Jade asks as she gets up, practically halfway to Louis' bedroom before he runs after her.

"What size shoe are you?" Perrie asks as she pulls off her shoes, a pair of black heels with shiny silver bows over the toes that Liam's been not-so-subtly eyeing all night. "Try these for me, would you?"

"I think if we put your hair up in a top knot it'd look fantastic," Leigh-Anne says as she stands up and walks around the couch so she can start fussing with Liam's hair from behind. Jesy pulls a bag up from the floor and roots around in it before she pulls a smaller bag from it and smiles at Liam.

"Don't worry, I won't go crazy," she says with a wink as she pulls out a small container of eyeshadow. Liam gulps a little but closes her eyes anyway, a small thrill running through her as she wonders what she'll look like once they're done with her.

Jade reappears a few minutes later with a black jacket in her arms for Liam to try on. It fits Liam so nicely that as soon as it's on Liam's not entirely sure if Louis will be getting this jacket back by the end of the night. The sleeves are rolled halfway up her forearms to reveal a dark floral print that Liam finds herself admiring for long enough that she doesn't realize everyone's staring at her.

"What?" she says.

"Think you're ready for the party now," Jade replies with a smile.


	6. Chapter 6

The excitement from the girls is so contagious that it feels like there are hundreds of butterflies fluttering around inside Liam's stomach. But the moment she and Louis leave his flat, the butterflies seem to morph into twisting vines that curl around her insides and remind her that she should be nervous. By the time they're sitting on the tube, Liam is downright terrified. She starts tapping her foot restlessly and wringing her hands together without even realizing it, a nervous habit that she's done so many times before. Only this time Louis carefully takes one of her hands in his own, and she suddenly stops.

"Sorry," she leans in to murmur. The tube isn't as busy as Liam expected but there's a fair amount of people having their own conversations that raise the volume of the din around them.

"It's alright," Louis replies with a smile. "It'll be fun, I promise."

"Yeah," Liam says, trying to smile in return but it fades just as quickly as her voice did. Louis frowns and squeezes her hand, getting her attention back on him.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Liam says. She lets it go for a moment before she sighs, knowing this is bound to come out sooner or later and maybe it won't be so bad inside her own head if she lets someone else in. "It's just… this is the sort of thing my, um, my ex would've gone to."

"Oh." Louis clears his throat. "D'you think he might be there?"

"No," Liam answers quickly. "Or, well, I dunno. He might be. God, what if he is?"

"I'm sure he won't be," Louis says, patting her hand. "And if he is, I'll protect you."

"I don't need protecting," Liam says with a gentle laugh. "It's just… god, I don't even know how to say this."

"You don't have to, I was just--"

"No, I want to. I think it's, what was that word you used, cathartic?" Liam tries to smile and Louis squeezes her hand again. "I think I'm just a little scared, is all. I was sort of in this world before - y'know, record labels and music execs - and it just didn't end well. I've seen what a bit of fame can do to someone and I don't want to lose myself like…"

"Like your ex did?" Louis asks hesitantly.

"Yeah," Liam replies sadly. "He just… changed. It happened so fast, I honestly don't know how. I just really don't want that to happen to me."

"D'you want my professional opinion?" Liam nods. "I don't think it will. I think you're the kind of person that won't be changed by 'this world', as you call it."

"But--"

"I think," Louis goes on, "if you were going to be changed then you would've been already. You're pure, Liam, and I don't mean that in a negative way. I mean that you're invested in yourself and what your music means to you, not what someone else might think of you."

Liam looks at Louis for a good long moment before a smile creeps across her face and she finds herself squeezing Louis' hand tightly.

"I'm glad I'm doing this with you, y'know. I'm sort of glad Nick rejected me."

"Me too. Not the rejection thing, but I'm glad you decided to give it a go with me in spite of that."

"Somehow I don't think you would've taken no for an answer," Liam teases.

"Probably not. But, hey, it worked out well for us, don't you think?"

"I suppose we'll see."

Louis rolls his eyes. "Just you wait, everyone at the party will love you and they'll be falling all over themselves to get your record."

"Have you been conspiring with Niall?" Liam laughs. "He keeps going on and on about how I'm going to make a million dollars or something."

"He's got the right attitude. Perhaps you're the one who needs to get onboard, missy!"

"Or you're both idiots and I shouldn't get on board with either one of you," Liam replies as they both burst into a fit of laughter.

Louis waits until they've changed lines and settled into new seats before he approaches the topic again. "So… Liam."

"Yes, Louis?"

"Your ex. What's his name?"

Liam swallows. "Harry."

"Just Harry?" Louis scoffs. "Who does he think he is, Madonna? Sting??"

"For god's sake," Liam says, giggling. "His last name is Styles. Harry Styles."

"Harry Styles?" Louis whistles softly. "Alright, then."

"What?" Liam asks suspiciously. She doesn't like Louis' tone nor the look on his face.

"I didn't say anything!"

"You whistled. Why'd you whistle?"

"Just…" Louis scratches his head. "He's a bit famous, isn't he?"

"We went to uni together," Liam explains. "To me he's still just Harry. Or well… he was."

"Was that why you left him?" Louis asks carefully.

"That, and um," Liam takes a deep breath, "he cheated on me."

"Shit," Louis mutters. "Fuck, Liam, I'm sorry."

"It's alright," Liam says quickly. "I mean, I don't know who it was and he never admitted to it but… the signs were there, you know?" Liam shakes her head. "I couldn't just sit by and watch him become this horrible person who just didn't care about anyone else's feelings. That's why I left."

"Yeah, well, look at you now." Louis offers a smile. "He's probably been kicking himself every day since you left."

"I wouldn't know," Liam replies, "I blocked his number the same night I left. I didn't want to hear his apologies or lies or whatever. It's better this way."

"For what it's worth, I think you're right. Nobody needs someone who doesn't care about them, whether it be a lover, friend, or family member. It's just shit that you had to find out the hard way that he wasn't good for you."

"You're going to make me cry," Liam says with a sniffle as she tries to wipe her eyes without smudging her eyeliner. "And then Jesy's going to murder you for messing up my makeup."

"Fuck," Louis laughs, "please, don't cry. I'm terrified enough of Jesy as it is."

"Then shut up or talk about something else, please." Liam smiles. "Or else I'll text her right now."

Louis immediately launches into a story about the first industry party he ever went to that apparently ended with him spilling drinks on several people, one of whom turned out to be Simon Cowell. Liam listens with rapt attention, the ridiculous image of Louis trying to apologize and dry Simon Cowell's coat with a cocktail napkin enough to push each and every thought of Harry out of her mind for the time being.

Of course, by the time they arrive at the party Liam's now terrified that she'll spill a drink on someone important and she tells Louis no less than a hundred times not to let her run into anyone.

"If it makes you feel better, I'll ask the bartender if they've got sippy cups."

"Louis!" Liam smacks his shoulder. "I'm serious!"

"So am I! It might save both of us a lot of trouble in the long run," he says with a grin as he gives his name to the very large man at the door. Liam tries to smile at him and not appear as nervous as she is, but he doesn't even look at her as he steps aside to let her and Louis through the door.

Liam releases a deep breath once they're inside, relieved that they weren't met with any trouble getting in, but her panic skyrockets once she sees just how many people are actually inside the club and she starts feeling overwhelmingly out of place. She grips Louis' arm as she glances around at the crowd, her eyes practically popping out of her head as she spots one famous person after another and gets starstruck.

"Louis!" she hisses, "there's Calvin Harris!"

"D'you want me to introduce you?" Louis asks with a smile.

"You don't know Calvin Harris, do you?"

"Not _well_ , but we've met before." Louis takes her hand. "C'mon, it'll be fun."

By the time Liam and Louis make it across the room to the bar, she's been introduced to half a dozen people that she never in a million years would have ever thought she'd meet. It's also unreal to her how _nice_ everyone seems to be and they all seem genuinely interested in the album she's recording with Louis.

"It's weird!" Liam says, defending herself against Louis' laughter. "I'm not used to this!"

"You'd best get used to it, Liam. Wait til people actually _hear_ your music, then you'll be proper fighting them off." Louis rubs his hands together. "Now, what'll you have to drink?"

"God, I don't even know." Liam laughs. "Feels like my head's spinning already, maybe I shouldn't drink at all."

"Nonsense, one drink won't hurt." Louis flags down the bartender and orders, but Liam doesn't hear what drink he's getting for her because she notices someone approaching them and she goes near-catatonic when she recognizes him.

"Louis, _Louis_!" She grabs his arm. "Ed Sheeran is coming this way!"

"What?" Louis turns around and crows, "Ed! You bastard!"

"Good to see you too, Lou," he says as they share a hug. "Thought I'd put in a bit of face time, y'know, get some people off my back."

"S'about fucking time," Louis says with a laugh. "Ed, I'd like you to meet Liam Payne."

"H-Hi," Liam stutters as she holds her hand out. Ed shakes it and smiles warmly at her. "You're Ed Sheeran."

"I am," he replies, still smiling.

"You weren't joking when you said you knew Ed Sheeran," Liam says, her eyes darting to Louis.

"Why does no one believe me?" Louis huffs and Ed laughs loudly.

"Because you're normally full of shit, that's why."

"Oi, look who's talking." Louis gives Ed a good-natured punch to his shoulder. "Liam's the next big thing, y'know. Soon you'll be seeing her everywhere and people will be saying 'Ed who?'"

"Louis--"

"How soon?" Ed asks, winking at Liam. "If it could start, like, tomorrow, then that'd be great."

"I won't, not really." Liam shakes her head. "We've only recorded two songs, it's nothing like--"

"Where are you recording?" Ed asks.

"My flat," Louis replies and Ed laughs again. "What?!"

"You finally did it, then? Turned my room into a studio, you shit. You said you were going to but I didn't think you actually would!"

"Fuck you, you moved out! Almost five years ago, now, if you don't remember." Louis laughs. "Did you think I'd keep it as a shrine or summat? Fuck off."

"I'll have to come by and see it, then." Ed turns back to Liam and smiles. "And hear your stuff, obviously."

"You don't have to--"

"That'd be great!" Louis says as he claps Ed on the back. "You still owe me, y'know. And not just one, either."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember. Doubt you'll ever let me forget." Ed moves closer to Liam and puts his arm around her shoulders so he can conspiratorily whisper, "Make sure Louis can't hold anything over your head because you'll never hear the end of it."

"Think I'm already there, unfortunately," Liam replies, blushing when Ed laughs.

"Quit shittalking me already, get out of here." Louis grabs Ed's arm and pulls him into another hug. "Good to see you, you arsehole."

"You too. I'll call you about coming by, I promise."

"Yeah, I'll believe that when I see it!" Louis yells as Ed disappears back into the crowd.

"That was Ed fucking Sheeran," Liam says a few minutes later after she's more or less recovered from what just happened. Louis grins and passes her the drink he ordered.

"Told you it'd be a good time."

They clink their glasses against each other in a toast before they each take sips and Liam winces a little at the strong taste of vodka. Louis smiles at her when she puts her glass down and coughs a little, clearing her throat as she turns her back to the crowd.

"Shit," Louis mumbles as he takes another drink. "There's Nick. Should probably make my presence here known so I don't get reamed on Monday."

"I'll, um," Liam taps her fingers on the bar, "I'll stay here, yeah?"

"You'll be alright? I won't be gone five minutes, honest."

"I'll be fine," Liam replies with a laugh. "Go on. Sooner you go the sooner you can show me off some more, right?"

"Right." Louis grins. "Okay, back in five, promise."

Liam rolls her eyes at him but watches as he heads off into the crowd, trying to keep her eyes on him but within a few seconds he's lost in the sea of people and Liam takes a deep breath. She can certainly handle being on her own for five minutes. She takes another sip of her drink before she pulls her phone out of her back pocket and opens a text to Niall.

_**partys goin gr8!!!! I MET ED SHERAN!!!!!** _

Liam giggles to herself as a response bubble pops up and a few seconds later Niall's reply comes through.

_**NO FUCKIN WAY!!!!!** _

Liam's in the middle of her own reply when someone's hand brushes her elbow and she glances up to see if she needs to move to the side, but when she sees who the hand belongs to she freezes in place.

"Liam, what are you doing here?" Harry asks. Liam glances down at Harry's hand, still lightly touching her arm, and she pulls away from him.

"I was invited," Liam replies flatly despite feeling flustered and angry at herself for letting her guard down.

"I didn't mean--" Harry takes a breath. "It's good to see you." He tries reaching out for her arm again and Liam holds her hands up in defense.

"Harry--"

"I've been trying to--"

"Don't, alright?" Liam interrupts. "I don't know why you thought this was a good idea but--"

"You just left," Harry says sadly and Liam loses her train of thought. "You didn't give us a chance to talk, I don't understand--"

"I couldn't _stay_ , Harry." Liam blinks, trying her very best not to burst into tears. God, just looking at Harry makes Liam's heart hurt more than she thought it would. He looks as handsome as ever, possibly moreso than she remembered, but there's something in his eyes that makes her ache for their past. "I just… you know what you did, you can't change that."

"But I don't, Liam, I--"

"Harry! There you are!" Liam stumbles back as a woman comes out of literally nowhere and wraps herself around Harry, hugging him before she loops her arm through his and tries to pull him away. "Everyone's waiting, you--"

"Gimme a minute, alright?" Harry asks as he keeps looking at Liam.

"Who…" Liam starts to ask but as she studies the woman in front of her she realizes something. She knows her; Liam met her at Harry's record company during the first week they'd moved to London. Her eyes dart to the way she's holding onto Harry and suddenly her whole body feels hot with anger. "Is this her?"

"What?" Harry blinks. "Liam, I don't know what you're--"

"Liam?" the woman repeats. "Oh, Liam! I remember you! I thought you said she went back home," she says to Harry.

"I didn't," Liam says before Harry can. "But I see now that I should've."

"Liam--"

"Don't, Harry." Liam shakes her head "Just don't."

"Liam!" Harry calls after her as she turns away from him and heads off into the crowd, following the direction Louis went earlier.

She doesn't run into Louis on her way towards the door but she can't stop herself and take a moment to look around for him for fear that Harry might catch up with her. She has no idea if he's tried to follow her but she hopes to God that he hasn't because that's the last thing she needs.

Once she makes it out of the club Liam gets about halfway down the block before she collapses onto the ground and bursts into tears. She wraps her arms around her legs and sobs against her knees, feeling stupid and embarrassed and just so upset that she can't even spare a second thought to the fact that she's all by herself on a random street in London.

There's no telling how long she spends crying on the sidewalk before her phone rings, but it's long enough that she can pull herself together for a moment to answer. She sees Louis' name on the screen briefly before she puts her phone to her ear, letting out a shaky breath before she manages to say hello.

"Liam! Where are you??"

"I…" Liam stifles a sob. "Outside? I don't know."

"What's wrong? Liam? Liam, stay on the phone, alright? Are you outside the club?"

"Y-Yes," Liam says as she starts to cry again before she can give Louis proper directions. He somehow miraculously manages to find her not two minutes later and quickly drops to his knees to wrap her up in a hug.

"Fuck, Liam, are you okay? What happened??"

"H-Harry… h-he was th-there," she manages to say in-between sobs.

"Shit," Louis mutters, "fuck, I'm so sorry, Liam. I'd never have brought you here if I'd known."

"It's n-not your f-fault." Liam gasps for breath. "I kn-know you wouldn't."

"C'mon, I'm taking you home." Louis keeps one arm firmly wrapped around her as he orders an Uber on his phone with his free hand. "It'll be alright, Liam."

Liam doesn't say anything in return, she just keeps crying against Louis' shoulder.

*

Liam's mostly composed herself by the time she and Louis make it back to Niall's flat. She's still miserable and a little sniffly but at least the tears have stopped streaming down her face. Some disconnected part of Liam's mind is thankful that Louis got them an Uber because she can't even imagine the looks they would've gotten had they been on the tube.

There's a noticeable din coming from inside Niall's flat even as they stand at the door while Liam fumbles with her key and she has to take a moment to take a deep breath. She knows that the moment she opens the door whatever fun is going on inside is all going to come to a screeching halt even if she begs for the opposite.

"You want me to…?" Louis offers softly as he starts to reach for Liam's key.

"I've got it," she replies, letting out her breath and unlocking the door.

Sure enough, there's a burst of cheers as soon as the door opens and it fades just as quickly as it started once Niall and the girls get a good look at Liam.

"Liam, what's wrong?" Niall asks as he rushes forward.

"What did you _do_?" Perrie demands of Louis as Niall pulls Liam into his arms for a tight hug.

"It wasn't me!" Louis says as Liam's led to the couch and the tears come back full force.

"It wasn't--" Liam tries to say through her tears, her breaths coming out shallow as she gasps for air, "he didn't-- I just--"

"It's alright, Li, I'm here," Niall murmurs soothingly as he holds her, gently rocking her back and forth as she continues to cry.

"What happened?" Leigh-Anne asks as she and Jade gather at Liam's feet while Jesy sits down next to her and curls against her other side.

"I left her alone for _five minutes_ and…" Louis laughs darkly, "her fucking ex was there and I dunno what he said but--"

"Harry was there?" Niall asks, turning his head to look at Louis. "Did you see him?"

"No, I didn't, I didn't even know he'd be there." Louis shakes his head and exhales sharply. "Liam told me about him on our way there and I swear, if I'd known I never would've…"

"It's not your fault," Perrie says as she pats Louis' arm. "Just the universe being shit, as per usual."

"He was there," Liam says as she tugs on Niall's shirt. "Niall, he was there with her."

"Her who? _The_ her?"

"I d-dunno." Liam's bottom lip wobbles as she tries not to start crying again. "I asked, but he… he didn't or he w-wouldn't say, but I just _knew_."

"Let it out, sweetheart," Jesy says as she starts stroking her fingers against Liam's hair in a soothing manner.

"D'you want to have a good ol' fashioned boy bash?" Leigh-Anne offers. "Always makes me feel better after a shit breakup."

Liam laughs a little and then sniffles. She pulls away from Niall a little to sit up straight as she wipes at her eyes, frowning when her fingers come back smudged with makeup.

"Don't worry about it, love," Jesy whispers when Liam looks at her with a frown.

"I'm sorry," Liam says miserably, "you all worked so hard to make me look fantastic, and now I've gone and ruined the whole night by crying."

"Don't say that!" Jade says as the others all protest as well. "You've every right to get upset if this arsehole hurt you."

"We're here for you, babe," Perrie says. "Us girls have got to stick together, remember?"

Liam gives her a watery smile, feeling thankful that she's managed to find such lovely people by absolute happenstance. The only problem is that Liam has very little interest in rehashing her relationship with Harry and that appears to be what the girls are aiming for. As her gaze travels from Perrie to Louis, she notices a look on his face that tells her he may actually know exactly what she's thinking.

"Perhaps we should let Liam get some rest," Louis announces, "it's been a long day and a tiring night, and god knows we've all got more work to do tomorrow."

"It is getting late," Leigh-Anne says as she checks the time on her phone. "Maybe Louis is right, girls."

"You sure you'll be okay?" Jade asks as she squeezes Liam's knee gently.

"I've got her," Niall says as he pats Liam's shoulder.

"He's always good for a cuddle," Liam agrees with a smile. "Thank you all so much, I can't even begin--"

"Hush, we're always happy to help," Jesy says as she leans over and plants a kiss on Liam's cheek. "Get some rest, yeah?"

Liam watches as they all gather up their things and Louis comes over to the couch and sits down to give her a hug before he leaves.

"It'll be alright," he whispers to her, "promise."

Liam doesn't say anything in return, she just hugs him closer.

"D'you want some tea, maybe?" Niall asks after everyone has left. "Or d'you just wanna go to bed? I can--"

"What about something a little stronger?" Liam asks. Niall laughs a little and then stares at Liam for a moment.

"You mean, like, a _drink_ drink?"

Liam nods. "I thought it might be nice not to feel anything for a bit."

"Shit," Niall says as he gets up and heads for the kitchen, "don't have to tell me twice!"

It's not long before Liam's head is feeling pleasantly fuzzy from the glass of whiskey that Niall gave her and her misery has given way to a sense of numbness that she gladly welcomes. In the end she's the one who brings Harry up again, the alcohol in her system finally letting loose an emotion other than sadness.

"What right's he got to look sad, anyway?" Liam huffs. "He's the one who cheated!"

"Absolutely," Niall agrees, humming as he takes another drink. "What a prick."

"I mean, he practically left me first, if we're getting tech--" Liam hiccups, " _technical_ about it."

"What d'you mean?"

"Like… he probably doesn't even remember how many nights I spent by myself waiting for him to come home. I told myself it didn't matter, right, because I loved him and he was out doing what he loved and that's like…"

"Love?" Niall prompts.

"Yes?" There's a moment of silence before the two of them burst into giggles and Liam shakes her head. "Fuck, I've gone and forgotten what I was saying."

"Something about… nights." Niall snaps his fingers. "Waiting around for Harry, that's it."

"Ugh, nevermind, don't remind me. I lost count of all those nights."

"Really? It was that many?"

Liam starts counting on her fingers but once she's gotten past all ten she groans and lays her palms flat against the coffee table in front of her.

"Might as well be infinity."

"Infinity?"

"Infinity," Liam says with a nod.

"Infinity."

"Stop repeating me!" She tries to smack Niall but her depth perception is very much skewed and she ends up hitting the couch cushion instead.

"S'fun to say," Niall protests. "Infinity," he says again, starting to sing, "infinity!"

Liam laughs as Niall continues to sing the word over and over until it starts echoing in her head and suddenly a melody appears behind it. Liam sinks back into the couch as her mind continues running wild until she suddenly smacks Niall for real this time.

"Ow! Okay, I'll stop!"

"No, don't," Liam says as she stands up, stumbling a little as she heads over towards Niall's kitchen table and grabs the first piece of paper she sees. "I think I've got an idea for a song. Keep singing, yeah?"

After polishing off the last of the whiskey in his glass, Niall starts singing what Liam assumes to be some Irish folk song at the top of his lungs and it sends her into a fit of giggles, making it quite impossible for her to concentrate.

"Never mind, never mind!" she shouts, still laughing even after Niall's stopped singing. "You're absolutely ridiculous," she mutters.

"True," Niall replies, humming sadly as he looks at his empty glass. He scoops up Liam's glass before he gets up and stumbles his way into the kitchen to refill both of their glasses, setting Liam's down on the kitchen table next to her before he retreats to the couch once more.

It's well past two in the morning by the time Liam thinks she's finished the song, with some helpful input from Niall once he stopped trying to drink the entire bottle of whiskey. They've both started to sober up thanks to Liam swapping out their whiskey glasses for ones filled with water instead, and they've managed to write up a proper melody that matches the one that Liam had imagined only a few hours before.

"Yes, yes, that's it!" Liam says excitedly once they've played it through. "Reckon it's done. Louis will be happy we've got another song, yeah?"

"He'll probably be too busy being impressed you wrote it in a couple of hours, Li." Niall laughs and shakes his head. "It's fantastic."

"S'pose I was… inspired," Liam says, her voice going soft. "All the things I wanted to say in the moment but couldn't, y'know?"

"Yeah, I do." Niall smiles at her. "Maybe he'll hear it someday and then he'll know just how much he fucked everything up."

"Maybe." Liam hums. "Wish I could make him hear it right now, just to prove a point."

"Yeah, wouldn't that be something?" Niall stares off into space for a moment and they both sit in a comfortable silence until he speaks again, "hang on, you could."

"What?"

"You could! Call him!"

"What-- it's nearly three in the morning, Niall, and--"

"Exactly! He won't answer, who bloody would at this hour? So you'll leave a voicemail."

"And say what?"

"No, you wouldn't _say_ anything, you'd _sing_ it."

Liam blinks. "I'm not following."

"You just said this song was everything you wanted to say but didn't, yeah?" Liam nods. "So sing it to him."

"Niall…" Liam pauses as she tries to come up with a decent reason why this is a terrible idea. She closes her mouth entirely when her alcohol-addled mind makes it too difficult to provide one and a grin spreads across Niall's face as he realizes that he's won the not-argument.

"I'll play, you sing."

Liam can hardly believe that this is how the night has progressed; that she and Niall scramble to create the best set-up for them to play a song to be recorded in a voicemail message, it's absolutely absurd. They end up sitting on the couch with Niall at one end with a guitar in his lap and Liam at the other holding her phone between them. It was Niall's idea to have her hold it instead of propping it up somewhere so that she would have something to concentrate on, to keep her mind from wandering or her hands from fidgeting.

"Ready?" Niall asks.

"As I'll ever be," Liam replies as she scrolls through her contacts until she reaches Harry's name. She presses on his phone number with a shaky finger, switching it to speakerphone as the line rings through to his voicemail.

She lets out a breath of relief when his message plays, her fear that Harry would pick up finally being put to rest. She locks eyes with Niall after the beep and he silently counts down before he starts playing the beginning notes of the song.

_Down to Earth_ , Liam sings, _keep on falling when I know it hurts_. Niall's smiling as he accompanies her, urging Liam to keep going with his eyes even as her hand holding the phone starts to shake. _Going faster than a million miles an hour, trying to catch my breath someway, somehow_.

Liam takes a breath and closes her eyes, the image of Harry earlier that night flashing in her mind and suddenly she finds more strength in her voice to sing the second verse. _Down to Earth, it's like I'm frozen but the world still turns_. She's still so angry at him for everything; for deserting her and losing sight of what used to be so important to him, to both of them. _Stuck in motion but the wheels keep spinning around, moving in reverse with no way out._

Leaving him was one of the hardest things that Liam has ever had to do but she knew it was for the best. Even if it hadn't felt like the right thing to do while she was doing it, Liam is finally starting to accept it as the truth. _And now I'm one step closer to being two steps far from you_. But then Harry just had to waltz back into her life, to make her second-guess everything she'd done by standing before her looking upset as though he was the one who'd been hurt in all of this and not her. _When everybody wants you_. But he hadn't been hurt, Liam was sure of it. He'd been the one doing the hurting. _Everybody wants you_.

Niall's still looking at her when she opens her eyes, giving her silent encouragement as she takes a breath and readies herself to sing the chorus. _How many nights does it take to count the stars? That's the time it would take to fix my heart_. There's a part of Liam that wishes Harry would've picked up the phone so she would know he's listening to every word she sings. A bigger part wonders if given the chance would she sing it to his face, let him see how strong she can be. _Oh, baby, I was there for you. All I ever wanted was the truth_.

Liam starts smiling as she sings the next line, _how many nights have you wished someone would stay_? For the first time she's not thinking of all the times she's cried herself to sleep but instead she's thinking about the possibility that Harry's done it too. _Lie awake only hoping they're okay_. It's a little vindictive and cruel perhaps, but for the first time Liam doesn't let herself feel bad about it. _I never counted all of mine, if I tried I know it would feel like infinity_.

Niall joins her as she sings it three times over and Liam's smile doubles in size as she ends the call. They both laugh a little and Niall sets his guitar down before he takes the phone from Liam's hand and sets it down on the coffee table.

"So… another round?" he asks, wiggling his eyebrows. Liam laughs.


	7. Chapter 7

The next week passes by slightly slower than Liam would've liked it to, if only because the recording sessions are limited to weekends when everyone can get together without their respective jobs interfering. Liam spends her days going over the songs she's decided to record, tweaking the notes and rewriting lyrics to get them _just_ right. It gets to a point where she's made so many tiny changes that Louis starts to groan every time she pulls out sheet music.

"You can't possibly have changed it again, Liam!"

"Only a little, I promise!" she says as she holds out the music for Louis to take.

"You say that, and then we have to spend the next hour relearning it," Jade says, knocking her hip against Liam's as she passes by.

"I swear, it's the last time," Liam promises.

"You said that about the last one," Jesy says.

"Ok, but that one was written at two in the morning with a _lot_ of whiskey," Liam protests, "it needed the work."

"It was great!" Niall chimes in. "It was perfect in its imperfection."

"Niall--"

"He's right," Louis interrupts. "It had that raw energy, y'know? It really came out in the recording, anyway."

"Wait, what recording?" Liam asks. Louis looks at Niall who gives Liam a sheepish look when she looks at him.

"I might've been recording it that night. Y'know, for posterity."

"You were drunk! How did you even--"

"It doesn't matter how, point is that I _did_ , and it's a good thing too." Niall smiles proudly.

"You're an absolute menace," Liam mutters.

"I couldn't let the only recording of it go to waste on Harry's voicemail," Niall mumbles.

Jesy's drumsticks clatter to the ground and Jade's fingers falter on her keyboard, slipping off the keys in the middle of her practice chords. Liam doesn't have to look at them to know they're staring at her but she's too busy glaring daggers at Niall.

She'd kept the fact that she called Harry that night a secret on purpose from Louis and the girls; half because it's truthfully none of their business, but the other half was because she didn't exactly know how to explain herself.

"What's that about Harry's voicemail?" Jade asks just as Perrie and Leigh-Anne come back into the studio.

"Harry? What?" Perrie asks.

"Nothing," Liam says as her eyes drop down to the sheet music in her hand and she clears her throat. "It doesn't matter."

The room stays utterly silent for a full minute and Liam still feels all eyes on her. She can feel her cheeks turning red, it's even possible that her entire body is flushing from the attention. This is exactly what she was trying to avoid and when she looks up at Niall again she can see the sorry written all over his face.

"Let's just get to work, yeah?" she says, thankful when everyone murmurs their agreement and gets into place.

It's a fool's dream for Liam to hope that they'll let the topic rest forever. It's a miracle that the subject isn't brought up once over the five hours they spend recording the song, especially when it's a constant presence in the back of Liam's mind.

"Hey Liam," Leigh-Anne says as she gently takes Liam aside during one of their breaks. Liam's heart stops for a moment as she thinks, _this is it_. She's positive that Leigh-Anne is about to ask about Harry, probably thinking she can get more out of Liam if it's one-on-one. Liam's so quick to prepare her response in her head that she nearly misses the question that Leigh-Anne does ask, "what're you doing after this?"

"I…" Liam swallows. "I dunno? Probably just going back to Niall's."

"What d'you say to coming out with me and the girls?" She smiles. "Just us, y'know? Girls night."

"Really?" Liam asks and Leigh-Anne laughs a little.

"Of course! It'll be fun. We'll go for drinks and dinner or something. Will you come with us?"

"Yeah," Liam says, smiling back. "I'd love to."

"Oh, good!" Leigh-Anne claps. "I'll tell the others, you let us know if there's anything in particular you want to do, alright?"

"Alright," Liam replies with a soft laugh. She stays quiet as she packs up her things, caught up in her thoughts as she tries to come up with some ideas for what she and the girls could do. Liam hasn't had an honest-to-god girls night since university and that was mostly spent marathoning Disney films and painting each other's nails.

Liam hasn't come up with any better ideas by the time the girls are ready to go, and it's then that she realizes she never told Niall that she wasn't going home with him either. Truth be told, she hadn't spoken to him all afternoon because of what he'd let slip about Harry but she didn't want to leave without saying goodbye.

"Niall?" Liam touches his shoulder lightly, flinching away when he turns around to look at her. "I'm, uh, going out with the girls."

"You are?" Niall blinks. "Like, tonight? Now?"

"Yeah. Leigh-Anne invited me and, well, I could use it."

"Yeah, okay." Niall clears his throat. "You, um, have fun, okay?"

"I will." Liam clears her throat and turns away from him, wincing at how awkward their conversation had been. She almost turns around to say something else but Leigh-Anne comes up and tugs her away, chattering excitedly about their plans for the night.

Liam spares a glance towards Niall just before she and the girls leave Louis' flat, but he doesn't watch them go. She doesn't get much time to dwell on it because she's quickly thrust into the middle of a conversation that she wasn't aware she was a part of, but it works well to distract her for a while.

Jesy suggests that they go to a restaurant nearby, adding that it's one that she knows has specials on drinks as she wiggles her eyebrows at Liam. Jade snickers and rests her head on Liam's shoulder as they continue walking down the sidewalk.

"Hey, Liam?" Jade says, slowing her walking pace so they drop a little behind the other girls. Liam stumbles a bit to match it but recovers quickly enough, only blushing a little.

"Yeah?"

"Are you and Niall… umm, well, are--"

"We're just friends," Liam says quickly. "Have been since uni, nothing more."

"I didn't, I wasn't--" Jade laughs nervously. "I just--"

"You like him." Liam smiles.

"Yeah, s'pose I do," Jade replies, her cheeks turning pink as she hides her face from Liam. "Just… y'know, wanted to make sure I wasn't overstepping or anything."

"You're not, don't worry." Liam pats her hand. "I'm pretty sure Niall likes you too, if that wasn't already obvious."

"Yeah, he's, uhh…" Jade snickers. "Not too subtle, is he?"

"It's part of his charm, I think." Liam laughs.

"Hurry up, you two!" Perrie shouts. Liam and Jade look up to see she's standing in the doorway of a restaurant a few doors down. "Or we'll get a table without you!"

The restaurant is barely half full so they're able to get a booth to fit all five of them with no issues and their waiter comes by to take their drink order no more than a minute after they've been seated. Liam looks to Jesy, who's obviously been to the restaurant before, to make the decision on their first round.

The five of them fall into easy conversation, chatting about random things while they wait for their drinks and continuing on after they've arrived. Liam forgets all about being on guard for questions relating to Harry and lets herself enjoy their company. She smiles and settles back against the cushion of the booth, feeling content and a little buzzed as she polishes off the remnants of her first drink. Jade was quick to order them another round before they'd even touched the first and Liam glances around the booth, smiling at Perrie and Jesy on her right and Leigh-Anne and Jade on her left. She has no idea what she was so nervous of before, the girls have never been nothing but absolutely lovely to her and this was an excellent idea.

"So, Liam," Jesy says as she clears her throat, "why'd you call Harry?"

Liam's eyes widen and she stares at Jesy while the other three each hiss her name and scold her in turn. She opens her mouth to reply but nothing comes out; she's far too stunned by Jesy's unprompted question, especially given her sense of security only moments before.

"We were all thinking it," Jesy murmurs.

"You could've softened the blow a bit, love," Perrie says as she strokes Jesy's cheek. Jesy sticks out her tongue at her and then smiles as she leans in and kisses Perrie on her cheek.

"Jesy has a point," Leigh-Anne says carefully. Liam turns to look at her and she immediately backtracks. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but… we're all here for you, you know."

"Absolutely," Jade adds.

"It's…" Liam takes a deep breath. "It's complicated."

"Take your time," Perrie says as she pats Liam's knee under the table. "Or we can change the subject, like Leigh said--"

"No, I think… I think I should talk about it." Liam sighs. "I'm just not sure where to start."

"How'd you meet him?" Jade asks. "S'good to start at the beginning, right?"

"Uni," Liam answers, "we both went to Birmingham for uni and enrolled in the same program."

"Uni sweethearts," Jesy coos, "that's so cute."

"We had a flat together there," Liam goes on. "Sometimes we'd spend all day writing songs together. It was everything I'd ever wanted. It was perfect."

"What happened next?" Leigh-Anne asks. "Why'd you come to London?"

"Harry, um, he used to post his songs online from time to time. Videos, and that sort of thing." Liam laughs a little. "I never wanted to be in them but I always liked watching them. He was electric, like, you couldn't look away even if you wanted to." Liam shakes her head. "Anyway, um, he was scouted by a label here in London. They offered to put him up in a flat here while he recorded a single, and if it did well then they'd do the whole bit."

"Shit, that's like a fairytale," Jade says with a laugh.

"Yeah," Liam laughs softly. "It sort of was. I couldn't believe it myself, really. He wanted me to go with him from the very beginning which, honestly, I was surprised. I remember, I kept asking that whole first week we were here whether I should've stayed back in Birmingham and every time he'd tell me over and over how he couldn't do this without me." Liam shrugs. "I thought he meant it."

"Of course you did," Leigh-Anne says as she scoots closer to Liam and puts her arm around Liam's shoulders. "Why wouldn't you? You loved him and he loved you."

"Yeah, well," Liam sniffles a little and clears her throat. "His single did better than either of us even thought possible and… well… that was sort of the beginning of the end, I suppose."

"What's the song?" Jesy asks.

"Yeah, would we know it?" Jade adds.

"It's, um, Through The Dark." Liam hums a bit of the melody and then drops her eyes to the table when a look of recognition sparks on every single one of their faces.

"Hang on, your Harry is Harry Styles?" Perrie asks and Liam nods. "Shit. Well, I'm not buying his album."

"Perrie--"

"She's right," Leigh-Anne interrupts. "Y'know, I was maybe going to buy a ticket to his show in a couple weeks and now," she shakes her head, "no way."

"Oh, don't," Liam insists, "if you want to go, you should go."

"No way! Solidarity!" Leigh-Anne says as she hugs Liam.

"Sorry, can I just…" Jesy sighs a little. "I'm still not getting why you called him. He cheated on you, didn't he?"

Liam nods. "Yeah, I mean… I didn't like, catch him in the act, or anything, but…"

"Sometimes you just know," Jade says with a frown. "That's almost worse, innit? Like, you start to wish you _would_ catch them so then at least you'd have proof."

"Proof or not, he's clearly an arsehole!" Jesy turns and reaches across Perrie to grab Liam's hand. "You're way too good for him, you know that, right?"

"Jesy--"

"Say it, Liam: I'm too good for Harry Styles."

"I'm too good for Harry Styles," Liam repeats dutifully, ducking her head as her cheeks turn pink.

"You'd better believe it," Jesy replies with a smile.

"I didn't want him to answer, y'know," Liam says. "When I called him, I wasn't like, hoping he'd pick up and tell me he missed me or whatever. I didn't even want to hear whatever he wanted to say when I ran into him at the party, I just…"

Liam breaks off and sighs deeply, staying quiet for a few minutes until Perrie prompts her, "what did you want, love?"

"I just wanted him to know how much he hurt me, y'know?" Liam says as tears well up in her eyes. "I wanted him to hear what I had to say without getting to say anything back. He doesn't deserve a chance to explain himself, to make excuses. He should know what he did was wrong!"

"Absolutely," Jade says, the other girls all murmur their agreement.

"Can I say something?" Leigh-Anne asks. "You're, like, living the dream. You took your heartbreak and you turned it into absolute art. You're making an absolutely incredible album and soon it'll be out there for the world to hear, and that includes Harry. He's never going to be able to think of you and not know what a huge fucking mistake he made. That's just… like… epic."

"She's right," Perrie says with a smile as she nudges Liam with her elbow. "You're definitely winning the breakup."

Liam wrinkles her nose. "That's not a thing, is it?"

"Oh, definitely." Jesy nods.

"It's true," Jade says with a grin. "And you're totally doing it."

Liam smiles as a warmth blooms in her heart alongside a feeling of adoration for these girls she's known just over a week. The more she learns about them the more she loves them and it feels so strange to think they weren't in her life before.

That feeling lasts long after they've all said their goodbyes for the night and Liam's made it back to Niall's flat, trying to let herself in as quietly as possible so as to not wake him up. She's surprised to see Niall sitting on the couch waiting for her, so much that she's not entirely sure she hasn't fallen asleep on the tube and is currently dreaming.

"Niall? It's… what're you doing?"

"Just…" Niall stands up and rubs his hands together. "Wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine?"

"And… to apologize." Niall sighs. "For earlier. I shouldn't have brought up Harry, that was wrong of me and--"

"Niall, it's okay," Liam tries to interrupt, but Niall keeps going.

"I know you don't like talking about him, and I'm sorry if the girls asked about him tonight--"

" _Niall_ ," Liam says firmly, finally getting his attention. "It's alright. Talking about him tonight with the girls was good. I needed it." She smiles as she steps forward to give him a hug. "You don't have to worry about me so much, y'know."

"Of course I do," he replies as he hugs her back. "You're my best friend, Li. I always worry about you."

Liam hugs him back tightly for a moment before she pulls away and pats his face gently. "You're a good one, Niall."

"You're a little drunk, aren't you?" Niall asks with a soft laugh.

"Not nearly as drunk as the other night," Liam replies as she gently pushes past Niall and lays down on the couch. "Now go on, go call Jade or something."

"I'm not--"

"Niall," Liam says in a knowing tone, "it's okay. Go on."

Niall opens his mouth to protest but laughs instead. "Alright. Good night, Liam."

"Night, Niall."


	8. Chapter 8

No matter how slow time seems to be going Liam is still surprised when suddenly it's been a month since she met Louis and somehow they've managed to record nearly an entire album. They've been practicing getting the timing down for the last song all day and it's only just starting to sink into Liam's mind that soon this will all be over.

"One more time for practice?" Niall asks. "Liam?"

"Hmm?" She blinks and looks at him. "Sorry, what?"

"Did we lose you?" Perrie asks with a soft laugh.

"No, sorry, I was just… thinking." Liam smiles a little and shakes her head. "Can't believe we're almost done with all of this."

"And what a long, strange trip it's been," Louis says as he stretches. "I did have an idea, though, since it's the last song and all."

"What sort of idea?" Jade asks. "I dunno if I like the look of your face."

"Excuse you, my face is just fine, thank you very much." Louis scoffs.

"Enough bickering, you two." Jesy gestures at them with her drumsticks. "Worse than a pair of children, you are."

"As I was saying," Louis continues, ignoring Jade as she sticks her tongue out at him and gives him the finger, "I thought we might do something a bit special for this one."

"Special how?" Liam asks.

"Special as in…" Louis scratches his head and drops his voice down to a low tone, "lugging all this equipment up to the roof."

"I'm sorry, what?" Leigh-Anne asks. "You want us to do what, exactly?"

"Louis, that's impossible, we can't--" Liam starts but Louis quickly interrupts.

"No, look, we don't need to bring absolutely everything, just the essentials." He starts listing what equipment they'd need to bring with them but as the list goes on Liam starts believing him less and less.

"Louis, that's practically the entire room!"

"It is not!"

"I like it," Niall pipes up. "Could be fun, Li."

"What about your neighbors?" she asks. "Won't they get mad at us for, I don't know, disturbing the peace?"

"Oh, who gives a fuck about the neighbors?" Louis replies with a huff. "Think of what it could do for the _song_ , Liam. The ambient sound, the raw quality! You wrote a song about wanting to fly, so why not record it with the sounds of the night sky all around you?"

Liam takes a long, hard look at Louis and then glances at the faces of everyone else in the room, trying to gage what they all think of this idea without asking the question out loud. They all seem to be looking for Liam to make the decision which she supposes is their right to expect, but it still doesn't help her make the decision by any means.

"Will this actually work?" Liam asks.

"If it doesn't then I'll let you have a go at me," Louis promises, "just nothing below the belt."

Perrie scoffs. "Where's the fun in that?"

The girls all snicker while Louis looks thoroughly unimpressed, meanwhile Liam is still thinking. She can't come up with any real reason to say no and if she's being honest the whole idea sounds like it could be fun.

"Okay," she decides, "let's do it."

Somewhere between the fourth and fifth trip up to the roof carrying heavy equipment, Liam starts to seriously reconsider this being a good idea. Louis continues to promise it'll all be worth it, but Liam isn't nearly as understanding as she was in Louis' flat after carrying an enormous amp up the stairs.

It takes well over an hour for them to set up the equipment again, and even longer to retune the instruments and get the sound levels to where they need to be in order to record properly. And even after all of that they all agree that they need to practice the song a few times on the rooftop before they record anything because the sound up there is vastly different than it was downstairs. The longer it takes them to get ready, the more worried Liam becomes that someone may actually call the cops on them for making too much noise.

And, to top it all off, Louis takes a phone call in the middle of one of their rehearsals!

"Louis, what…" Liam asks, getting hopelessly distracted in the middle of a verse and causing the rest of the group to fall apart as well.

"I'll be back in two minutes," Louis promises, "keep going, it sounds great!"

"He's joking, right?" Leigh-Anne asks, scoffing as Louis disappears through the door.

"Let's just run it again," Jesy says, "we've almost got it, anyway."

Jesy's right; when they start over, the song sounds just as good as it did down in Louis' proper studio. The only problem is that Louis comes back halfway through their run-through and causes yet another disruption because he doesn't come back alone.

"Is that--" Niall leans in to Liam and hisses, "is that Ed Sheeran?"

"Looks like it," Liam whispers back as she gives Ed a smile and a nervous wave.

"Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt," Ed says as he and Louis walk towards them. "I have to admit, this isn't what I expected when you said you had a studio, Lou."

"Special circumstances," Louis explains.

"Meaning he had us lug all this equipment up here for his vision or something," Jade remarks with a huff.

"Good to see you again, Jade." Ed grins. "See you haven't lost your snark."

"How would I deal with Louis without it?" she replies, grinning herself.

"How did I end up with so many awful people for friends?" Louis mutters.

"Takes one to know one!" Perrie says before she introduces herself to Ed, the rest of the girls following. Liam waits for Niall to do the same, though it soon becomes apparent that Niall's just too starstruck to do it himself.

"This is Niall, he's my best mate." Liam tugs on his arm, pulling him towards Ed so they can shake hands. "He's really the reason all this is happening."

"Good to meet you," Ed says. Niall lets out a slightly hysterical laugh and Liam has to stifle a giggle of her own.

"You-- Yeah, you…" Niall struggles to speak and tries to clear his throat. "It's, um, good. Yeah."

"Oh, for God's sake, Niall!" Louis says with a roll of his eyes. "Ed's not the bloody Queen!"

"Louis!" Liam hisses as a dark red flush blooms across Niall's cheeks.

"Sorry, I--"

"No, I'm sorry," Ed laughs a little, "I thought Louis would've told you I was coming. Should've known better, clearly."

" _Clearly_ I thought it'd be a nice surprise," Louis replies with a huff. "Shall we get to it, then?"

Ed takes a seat on the floor, refusing the seat that Louis offers him. Liam spares one last glance at him before she adjusts her microphone, thinking it strange and feeling rather envious of the fact that he can be so normal when his life is so clearly the opposite. It's honestly how Liam hopes she will remain if she ever manages to get even half as famous as Ed is.

She shakes the distracting thoughts out of her head as she glances around at the girls formed in a circle in front of her; Perrie on her right with her violin, then Jade at the keyboard, and Leigh-Anne having swapped out her bass guitar for a cello. Jesy stands to her left, poised at another microphone to provide backup vocals and smiles back at her.

"Ready?" Liam asks as she turns her head to look back at Louis. He gives her the thumbs up, as does Niall, and she smiles at the pair of them.

"No pressure," Jade says, sending Liam a wink before she drops her eyes down to her hands on the keyboard. Liam watches as she mouths the countdown before she presses down on the keys, starting to play the melody that carries most of the song.

Liam shuts her eyes and takes a deep breath as she listens to Jade play, opening them just before she's due to start singing. _If I could fly, I'd be coming right back home to you._ Liam's eyes travel upwards to the night sky as she sings, searching for stars amidst the light pollution throughout the city. _I think I might give up everything, just ask me to_. She finally spots one and focuses on it as though it were the only star in the whole of the sky.

A siren goes off somewhere in the distance, bringing Liam back down from the heavens. _Pay attention, I hope that you listen because I let my guard down_. She can see Perrie and Leigh-Anne watching her with soft smiles, each of them waiting patiently for their parts in second verse. _Right now I'm completely defenseless_.

Liam remembers writing this song when she and Harry still lived in Birmingham, the week before they were due to move to London. Everything was happening so fast and it was all a bit scary but Harry was always quick to reassure her that everything was going to be alright. _I've got scars, even though they can't always be seen_. He was so sure that moving to London was going to be like a fairytale and Liam had no reason not to believe him. _And pain gets hard, but now you're here and I don't feel a thing_. Sometimes she curses her younger self for being so naive, for putting all of herself into a relationship without any thought as to what could happen if it imploded. Now, Liam can't help but think she should've seen it coming.

_I can feel your heart inside of mine_ , Liam's voice wavers a little and Jesy's hand reaches out to grip her wrist as she joins in, _I feel it, I feel it_. The touch grounds Liam in reality and she smiles at Jesy. _I've been going out of my mind_. Jesy's voice echoes in her ears, _I feel it, I feel it_ , and Liam looks up to the night sky, _know that I'm just wasting time and I_ , sighing a little in relief as she spots her star again, _hope that you don't run from me_.

It's funny how Liam thought she was over getting an ache in her heart whenever she thought of Harry. She thought maybe, after that night out with the girls, that she really was starting to get over him. _For your eyes only, I show you my heart_. But now here she is, singing her heart out on a rooftop in the middle of London, and all she can think about is Harry. _For when you're lonely and forget who you are_. She tries to push away the thoughts, to tell herself that she doesn't need him anymore. If the last month has proven anything it's that Liam is stronger than she ever thought possible and that's far more important to her than whatever Harry was trying to tell her that night in the club. _I'm missing half of me when we're apart_.

But if that's true, then why can't she stop thinking about him once and for all?

_Now you know me, for your eyes only_.

* 

After they've recorded a few more takes of the song, they're all faced with the reality that they've got to carry all the equipment back down the stairs to Louis' flat. Having Ed there to help the second time around does make it go slightly faster and Liam finds herself enjoying it far more when Ed's around to talk shit. At first Liam thinks she's imagining the looks she's getting from the other girls as she and Ed continue to chat even they've finished bringing everything downstairs, but she catches Perrie staring a bit too long and it's clear something's going on that Liam's unaware of.

She excuses herself, leaving Ed to poke around where Louis is figuring out which take from the roof was the best, and heads over to where Perrie and Jesy are loitering in the doorway.

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?"

"No reason!" Perrie replies as she quickly herds Jesy into the living room and Liam follows, giving Perrie an unimpressed look. "What? It's nothing."

"I think we might get going, if that's alright." Jesy pats Liam's arm and smiles at her. "Think we're done for the night anyway, aren't we?"

"Well, I think Louis was going to play everything back for Ed--"

"Yeah, we really don't need to be around for that," Perrie interrupts as she gives Jesy a pointed look. "Do we, love?"

"Nah, we'll hear it once Louis' put it all together." Jesy turns her head and calls Leigh-Anne's name. "You ready?"

"Yeah!" Leigh-Anne calls back.

"What's going on?" Jade asks as she joins Perrie and Jesy. "I thought we were going to stay and--"

"No, you have that thing in the morning, don't you?" Perrie says as she turns her head and gives Jade the same look she gave Jesy moments before.

"What thing? I don't have a thing."

"You know. That _thing_ ," Perrie says through gritted teeth.

"Perrie," Liam starts, but she's interrupted by Jade exclaiming loudly and Liam's surprised she doesn't see a bloody light bulb above her head.

"Oh! _That_ thing!" Jade smiles widely at Liam. "Yeah, I've got a thing. Should definitely get going."

"What thing?" Niall asks as he appears at Jade's side. Perrie and Jesy say their goodbyes to Liam and go to join Leigh-Anne in gathering their bags from the other side of the living room. "What's going on?"

"I don't exactly know, but I _think_ \--" Liam says, getting cut off by Jade again before she can finish her thought.

"The girls and I are going to head out, d'you want to come along?"

"Well…" Niall sighs a little and turns his attention towards the doorway where he can just see Louis and Ed sitting inside the studio for a moment before he looks at Liam and offers her a smile, "I don't particularly fancy making an arse out of myself in front of Ed again, so yeah."

"Cool," Jade replies with a smile.

"What about you, Liam?" Niall asks and before Liam can say anything, Jade's speaking.

"She's staying here!" Jade darts her eyes to Liam and laughs nervously. "I'm sure Ed wants to talk to you, y'know, about your album and all."

"I… guess I'm staying here, then?" Liam shakes her head. "I'll text you when I'm heading back."

"Alright," Niall says as he gives Liam a hug. "Have fun, don't party too hard, et cetera."

"Have fun!" Jade says, her smile just on the side of wicked that makes Liam feel suspicious but not enough to warrant her trying to weasel anything out of Jade.

Liam can't quite fathom the conversation she was just a part of even after the girls and Niall have left. She's still trying to get a handle on it as she walks back into the studio and takes a seat behind Louis and Ed.

"Did I hear the front door?" Louis asks as he leans back in his chair, trying to look for the others. "Where'd everyone go?"

"Apparently they had _things_ to do," Liam replies.

"Things?" Ed says with a snicker. "What sort of things?"

"Dunno." Liam shrugs. "They were all acting very strangely."

"Maybe they wanted to give you some alone time with me and Ed." Louis laughs. "Or maybe just Ed."

"Oh my god," Liam groans as she puts her head in her hands, feeling her cheeks burn red with embarrassment as both Louis and Ed start laughing. "Shut up!"

They keep laughing and Liam gets so flustered that she has to leave the room. Louis calls after her to bring him something to drink and she's got half a mind to bring him something just to pour it on top of his head. She considers it for half a minute as she's standing in Louis' kitchen, but then decides that's a terrible idea because of all the expensive equipment.

"I'll just… hit him, or something," Liam mumbles to herself. "Prat."

She returns to the studio with three bottles of water, one for each of them, but she waits for Louis to be distracted with opening his so she can sneak a smack against the back of his head without him seeing it coming.

"Ow! What the--"

"You know what that's for," Liam replies as she sits back down. "Now let's listen to the bloody record already."

"I really like her," Ed murmurs as Louis rubs the back of his head.

"Say it a bit louder and maybe she'll smack you too," Louis replies.

Liam smiles to herself as Louis pulls up the master tracks, setting the first one to play as he takes a long drink from his water bottle.

Ed remains quiet throughout the song and Liam watches him carefully to try and gauge his reaction. He nods his head along to the tempo and a smile slowly creeps across his face, making Liam slightly relieved even though he hasn't said a word. Liam normally doesn't like listening to herself sing but even she has to admit that the song sounds incredible, so much better than she ever could have imagined it to.

"That's so good," Ed says once the song is over. "You were so right, there's that raw quality to it that just, like, brings it all together."

"Easy to do with someone as talented as Liam," Louis says as he jerks his head towards her.

"Shut up," Liam mumbles, still not used to having to take so many compliments at once.

"He's right, Liam." Ed turns to her. "If the rest of your songs are like this, then you've got a fantastic first album."

"Thanks," she replies, trying to hold back her smile because it's entirely possible that it'll take over the whole of her face if she were to let it.

"Have you thought about collaborating with anyone?" Ed asks after they've listened to a couple more of the songs. Liam's about to shake her head no when Louis speaks first.

"What, like, with you?" he teases.

"Well, that'd be great, but that's not what I meant." Ed slaps Louis' knee. "I had someone else in mind, actually."

"Who?" Liam asks, genuinely curious.

"Have you heard of Harry Styles?"

Liam's eyes go wide and Louis, who had chosen that exact moment to take another sip of his water, chokes on his mouthful and sputters as he tries to get a hold of himself. Liam recovers quickly enough to help Louis by patting his back until he gets his breathing back under control. Ed looks back and forth between the pair of them and Liam avoids his eyes, hoping against her better judgment that he'll forget he even said anything.

"I'm going to take that as a yes?" he says slowly. "And… possibly a bad thing?"

"You could say that," Louis says as he wheezes a little.

"I, um… we were together." Liam sighs a little before she mumbles, "the whole bloody album's about him."

"Really? No shit?" Ed whistles. "Sorry, I didn't--"

"It's okay," Liam says, "you couldn't have known."

"It's just funny… well, not like _funny_ , but y'know, like." Ed clears his throat. "Your songs paint a very different picture than what I gathered from him."

"You… what?" Liam blinks. "You met him? When?"

"He was at that party a couple weeks ago, remember the one?"

"Oh, yeah. We remember that one." Louis sends Liam a slightly worried look but she doesn't return it.

"What did he say?" she asks.

"Well, um, he was a bit drunk." Ed laughs. "He was really drunk, actually. Probably a bit too drunk. This was like, hours after I'd seen you two. We were just, like, I don't even know how we got onto the topic, but I was asking if he had, like, a steady writing partner and then next thing I know he's going on and on about this girl who left him and broke his heart."

"He _what_?"

"I'm just repeating what he said!" Ed says as he quickly puts his hands up in defense.

"No, I'm not angry, not with you, I just…" Liam shakes her head. "He said _I_ broke his heart?"

"That was the gist of it, yeah." Ed wiggles his hand. "It was a bit hard to understand at times but he seemed pretty torn up about it."

"Liam," Louis says softly as he reaches out to touch her hand. "You alright?"

"'m fine," she replies. Her voice wavers slightly and she sucks in a sharp breath. "It's just… a lot."

"'m sorry," Ed says. "D'you want me to go, because--"

"No, no, God." Liam groans. "Sorry, shit, let's just…" The words _forget it_ are on the tip of Liam's tongue but as hard as she tries to say them, she knows it's not what she really wants to say.

She wants to ask Ed more questions. She wants to know exactly what Harry said that night. It didn't make sense to her at first but the more she thinks about it, the more she starts to wonder if she's been the one in the wrong this whole time.

"Wasn't he there with someone?" she finds herself asking.

"Liam--"

"Some people from his label, I think." Ed shrugs a little. "Nobody like, important, if that's what you're asking."

Liam laughs a little. "I don't even know what I'm asking, if I'm honest."

"Feel free to stop me if I'm wrong," Ed says as he clears his throat, "but seems to me like maybe you two didn't really talk enough."

"I don't think that's really any of your business," Louis says. His tone isn't nearly as sharp as Liam would've expected it to be; it's more hesitant, like Louis isn't really sure if it's his place to say it.

"Nah, probably not. Like I said, stop me if I'm wrong." He holds up his hands. "Just saying what it looked like from the outside, is all."

"Thanks," Liam mumbles. She feels a bit foolish for having asked anything of Ed in the first place. She wishes she could turn back time and somehow prevent the whole conversation so she wouldn't be left with a mind full of thoughts she'd tried to leave behind.

*

There's a strange tension in the air after Ed leaves Louis' flat. Liam can tell Louis is being careful with her as though he's afraid she's going to fall apart like she did after running into Harry at the party weeks ago. He hasn't said much of anything since Ed brought up Harry in the first place which made things far more awkward than necessary and truth be told, Liam's rather relieved that Ed's gone if only so she can confront Louis and tell him to stop treating her as though she's about to crumble.

"Louis," she says, trying to get his attention as he steadfastly avoids her eyes, "Louis, would you--"

He disappears into the kitchen and Liam huffs before she follows him, standing in the middle of the doorway so he'll have to try and get by her in order to leave. She watches as he rummages around in his fridge for a few seconds, and when he stands up straight and closes the door he's holding two bottles of beer in each hand.

Liam takes two of the bottles when he offers them to her, but she frowns when he still won't look her in the eye.

"I'm alright, Louis." Liam tilts her head as she smiles. "Really, I am."

"You sure?" Louis asks, finally bringing his eyes up from the floor to meet Liam's gaze. "Because if I were you, I don't know that I would be."

"Sort of have to be, don't I?" Liam sighs. "Dunno what else I'd do."

Louis' mouth twists into a frown. He steps forward and Liam lets him pass through the kitchen doorway, following him back into the living room where he grabs two blankets from his couch and then heads for his front door. Liam pauses and stares after him in confusion, waiting until he turns back and motions for her to follow before she takes another step.

He leads her back up to the roof and passes her a blanket before settling down on the ground and wrapping himself in the second one. Liam hesitates, still a little unsure of what Louis' plan is, but eventually wraps the blanket around herself and sits down next to Louis. She sets one beer bottle aside and cracks open the other, Louis following suit before he offers his up for Liam to clink hers against.

"Cheers," he says with a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes.

"Louis, what is it?" Liam asks. "What's wrong?"

"Are you really okay?"

Liam sighs. "Is that what you're so worried about? Louis, I'm fine."

"How?" Louis shakes his head. "How can you be so fine about all of this?"

"All of what? Louis--"

"What d'you mean, 'all of what'? Liam, isn't it obvious? Harry's just as fucking miserable as you are about all of this, and--"

"I'm not miserable!"

"Liam," Louis says flatly, "c'mon."

"I'm not!"

"Alright, you may not be _miserable_ , but you can't honestly tell me that what Ed said didn't fuck with your head."

Liam's shoulders slump and she hangs her head. It's true, she can't honestly say that. Ed's words have been running through her mind ever since he said them but she's been trying her best not to dwell on them.

"It's not like I can do anything about it, can I?" Liam says with a huff. "He tried talking to me once and I practically bit his head off. Dunno why he'd try it again."

"You--" Louis groans. "Liam, just… fuck. You can't let that stop you."

"Well, how do I know that what Ed said is even the truth?! Harry could've just been playing the 'woe is me' card to get sympathy or something!"

"Would he? Would the Harry that you know, the one that you fell in love with, do that?"

Liam slumps again. "No," she mumbles. "No, he wouldn't. But--"

"Liam, I… I didn't think it before when he said it but now, I can't help but think like maybe Ed had a point. You two never talked about anything before you left, did you?"

"I thought he cheated," Liam answers softly. "He didn't deny it, so--"

"But he didn't confess either, did he? And did you ever even ask him point blank if he did?"

"No," Liam murmurs, her voice barely above a whisper.

"So you just left without giving him a chance to explain?"

"It's not that simple, Louis."

"Then explain it to me."

"I don't kn--" Liam groans. "Why are you hounding me about this?"

"Because I don't want you to let your stubbornness to ruin your life the way I did!" Louis shouts.

Liam stays silent and perfectly still for a full minute as she stares at Louis after his outburst. He's avoiding her eyes again as he drinks his beer and stares at the ground under his feet. The only other time Louis has ever mentioned his past relationship was the first night he brought Liam and Niall to his flat, and ever since then Liam hadn't really thought about it. Now that it's come up again and Louis is visibly upset over it, there's a heavy weight of guilt sitting on Liam's heart for never trying to talk to Louis about it before.

"Louis, I… I'm sorry."

Louis sniffs and shakes his head. "It's alright."

"No, it's not." Liam frowns. "You're upset."

"Yeah, well, guess I've still got a broken heart, then."

"Oh, Louis." Liam scoots closer to him and wraps her arms around him in a hug, squeezing him tightly.

"It's my own fault," he says, sniffing again and wiping his eyes when Liam pulls away. "I told him to leave and he did." Louis laughs. "He never listened to me before, dunno why he had to start then."

"What if you asked him to come back? Maybe he'd--"

Louis shakes his head. "Nah, he… he left. Moved to the States, actually. By the time I realized what a stupid mistake I'd made, it was too late. He was gone."

"Louis," Liam whispers softly, her voice catching on the edge of a sob.

"Remember what I told you?" Louis asks as he takes Liam's hand in his own. "It's all gotta be worth it, yeah?"

"Yeah," Liam replies softly. Louis tilts his head towards Liam, gently knocking his against hers and leaving it there as he sighs.

"Maybe you don't have to lose him forever to know that he was worth missing."

Liam looks down at their hands and takes a deep breath. As she lets it out she slowly tilts her head upwards to the sky, her eyes immediately going for the same patch where she spotted the star a few hours before. At first she doesn't see it anywhere and her heart starts to sink, but then she tilts her head even further back and there it is: shining right overhead.

"Maybe," she echoes softly, "maybe."


	9. Chapter 9

When Liam returns home later that evening it's to a quiet flat where Niall is already fast asleep for the night and unable to engage in conversation or even just a cup of tea. Liam hesitates by his door for a moment but thinks better of waking him up and instead retreats to the couch, hoping to get some sleep herself.

Unfortunately, from the moment she lays down all she can do is think about Harry. For the first time in weeks she finds herself actually _wanting_ to think about Harry, and between what Ed told her and the advice Louis gave her she wonders if she made the right choice in leaving him in the first place.

Liam rolls onto her side and reaches for her phone, having set it down on the coffee table before attempting to go to Niall's room, and starts scrolling through her photos. She smiles as she passes through all the photos that have been taken over the last few weeks, many of which she hasn't seen before, given Perrie and Leigh-Anne's tendency to snatch her phone during rehearsals and take pictures without her realizing. She quickly skips over the section of photos of her lonely self that she'd rather not see and instead stops on the last photo of herself and Harry.

He'd taken her to the London Eye that day and paid extra for a capsule just for the two of them, complete with chocolates and champagne. Liam couldn't believe he'd done that, she'd have been just as happy with standing in line and boarding a normal capsule, but Harry wouldn't hear of it. He insisted that he wanted to make it special.

"I still can't believe you've done this," Liam said to him as their capsule rose in the air, heading for the top of the Eye.

"D'you like it?" he asked, coming up from behind and wrapping his arms around her tightly as they both gazed down on the Houses of Parliament below.

"Of course I do!" Harry laughed and kissed her cheek, humming happily when she turned her head and gave him a proper kiss.

"How much do you like it?" he asked in a suggestive tone and Liam started to blush.

"Harry, stop it." Liam glanced at the host that had accompanied them. He was politely watching the scenery change as opposed to looking at them, but his presence was enough to make Liam a little self-conscious.

"It was just an innocent question!"

"Nothing about that was innocent, I know you."

Harry laughed and squeezed her as he leaned in for another kiss. "S'pose you caught me."

Once they were let off, Harry began to walk towards the 4D cinema as admission was included as part of their package but Liam came to a stop instead and tugged on his hand. He stopped and turned around, giving her a quizzical look as he stepped closer to her.

"What?" he asked. "Don't you want to go?"

"I was thinking of going back home, actually," Liam said, giving Harry the sort of look she hoped he would recognize. It took a few seconds but soon a sly grin appeared on Harry's face and he pulled her close.

"Oh, really?" he murmured, leaning in to press a kiss to her lips.

"Maybe," Liam replied, "if you're interested."

"I'm definitely interested," Harry said quickly and Liam laughed. "Absolutely."

Unfortunately, that memory comes along with a realization for Liam: that day was the last they got to spend together before Harry's single got so popular that their lives were turned upside down. Gone were the days they could roam around London without drawing attention to themselves, and Liam was left alone.

Liam puts her phone down on the couch cushion next to her and sighs softly as she watches the screen go dark. There's a small ache in her heart from reliving the memory but it doesn't hurt nearly enough to surpass her sudden desire to talk to Harry. She can't help but think that maybe Louis was right, maybe he deserves the chance to explain himself that Liam wasn't willing to give before.

After a few more minutes of silent debate in her head, Liam picks up her phone and opens a new text. She addresses it to Harry easily enough but then she pauses as she tries to think of what she wants to say. Her first thought is to say just a simple "hi," but what would that accomplish?

"Absolutely nothing," Liam mutters to herself, shaking her head as she tries to come up with something better.

She types out _**I miss you**_ , but deletes that almost immediately after finishing typing it. It's just not right.

Liam huffs and nearly locks her phone and forgets about sending a text at all; there's just no point if she can't figure out what she wants to say. Then, it hits her.

_**I'm sorry**_ , she types carefully. She takes a deep breath before she presses send, and then she waits.

Five minutes go by, then twenty, and soon Liam realizes she's been waiting nearly an hour for a reply and it's well past midnight. She sets her phone back down on the coffee table and settles into the couch, telling herself she hasn't received a reply yet because it's late. Harry might be asleep, not endlessly staring at his phone waiting for her to text.

Liam falls asleep thinking, or hoping, really, that there will be a text waiting for her when she wakes up.

She sleeps fitfully throughout the night, constantly trying to roll over and fall back asleep when she wakes up. It's only when Niall's up and in the kitchen does she decide to give up entirely on sleeping any further and checks her phone.

There's no text back from Harry.

"You okay?" Niall asks.

"Yeah," Liam replies as she sets her phone down. She tries not to frown as she gets up and joins Niall in the kitchen to help with breakfast, but she can't stop herself from feeling disappointed at the lack of a reply from Harry. She checks the time when she sits down to eat and decides that maybe it's too early for her to expect a text back, maybe he hasn't gotten up yet.

It's a thin excuse, hardly acceptable at all, but she's going to stick to it. She's going to give Harry more time.

"What're you up to today?" Niall asks.

Liam shrugs a little as she pokes at her eggs with her fork. "Dunno. It's a bit weird not having anything to do, now that we're all done recording."

"Yeah," Niall laughs, "s'pose it is."

"What about you? Any plans for today?"

"Uhh, well," Niall laughs again, this time a little bashful and Liam can see his cheeks beginning to turn pink. "I, um, might have a date."

"You _might_?" Liam giggles. "Niall, shouldn't you know?"

"Well, it's just, like…" Niall covers his face and groans, "it's with Jade, alright? It's the first time we'll have proper hung out without you lot and, I dunno, does that make it a date?"

The idea of Niall and Jade going out on a real date cheers Liam up so much that she immediately forgets all about waiting on a text from Harry. She smiles widely as she grabs Niall’s hand across the table and squeezes it.

"That's so exciting!"

"I'm probably reading too much into it, yeah?" Niall shakes his head. "It's probably not a date."

"Aww, Niall." Liam pouts. "I'm sure it is, I can't imagine Jade thinks it's anything but a date."

"You think so?" Niall looks so hopeful that Liam may honestly burst into tears.

"Absolutely," she says as she pats Niall's head. "Anyone with eyes can see you two are perfect for each other." She grins. "At least, the girls and I certainly think so."

"Why am I not surprised?" Niall asks as he chuckles.

"When are you meeting her?"

"In an hour or so," Niall checks the time on his phone and hums. "I should probably get ready."

"You do that," Liam says as she grabs Niall's plate from its place in front of him and stands up. "I'll do the dishes, go on."

"Liam--"

"Go on, Niall!" She smiles at him before she walks to the sink and turns on the faucet, drowning out whatever protest Niall might've tried to give. She doesn't hear him walking up behind her so she's surprised when he suddenly hugs her from behind and smacks a loud kiss to her cheek.

"Love you, Li."

"Love you too, idiot." Liam laughs. "Now go get ready, I don't want you being late to meet Jade."

"Alright, alright. Jesus, you're worse than my mum."

"Ooh, I'm gonna tell her you said that," Liam teases as she glances over her shoulder at Niall as he leaves the kitchen while laughing.

It doesn't take long for Liam to start thinking about Harry again as she hums softly to herself while washing the dishes. Even though her phone was still on the coffee table in the living room she could hardly focus on anything else. She forces herself to concentrate on what she's doing rather than rushing back to the living room to check whether or not Harry has texted back yet. If she lets her mind wander far enough she'll start agonizing over what Harry would have said, had he actually texted back, and that's a road Liam's not sure she can go down.

After Liam finishes the dishes, she walks past the coffee table on her way into the bathroom. Her eyes dart to her phone as she passes it but she makes a point not to stop and pick it up, telling herself she's giving Harry a little more time in case he needs it.

Try as she might, Liam can't stop herself from continuously imagining what Harry's reply would be. The possibilities start flooding her mind as she's getting ready for the day ahead. She imagines the best case scenario, which resembles something out of a fairytale a little too much for Liam's liking, which doesn't do much to reassure her in the end. She knows full well that fairytales don't exist in real life, not unless she was to marry an actual prince and even then it doesn't really count.

After Niall leaves, Liam curls up on the couch and stares at her phone. She checks her notifications again only to find the same number as before: zero. She focuses on her phone and wills it to light up with a text from Harry, staring so intently that if she had superpowers she may actually have made it explode if she wasn't careful. After a few solid minutes of staring, Liam huffs and turns away from it. She almost wishes she _had_ made it explode, because then at least she wouldn't have to keep waiting for a text that may or may not come.

She spends perhaps another five minutes sitting on Niall's couch before she jumps up and decides she's going out. Liam knows full well if she stays cooped up in the flat all day just staring at her phone, she's going to make herself crazy. And that is absolutely not what she needs. Liam waits until the last possible second to grab her phone, checking it only just before she gets on the tube to head towards Oxford Street.

There's still no text from Harry.

Liam spends the next hour wandering up and down Oxford Street, only letting herself look at her phone once per store. Soon she finds herself walking in and out of stores in under a minute, paying hardly any attention to what's inside, too preoccupied with checking for a reply from Harry. She curses herself for being too impatient and shoves her phone into her bag, hoping that maybe this way she'll be able to keep her resolve.

She walks until she hits Regent Street and decides to turn down it instead of turning back around on Oxford for a fourth time, but her interest in going inside anywhere she walks past has dwindled down to zero. Liam glances in the windows of the shops that she passes by, half window shopping and half out of mere curiosity. She pauses in front of the window of a bakery through which she can see the bakers inside at work, rolling dough and frosting sweets to be sold to the patrons inside. As she looks further she can see tables and chairs inside that are occupied by people who look happy and seem to be enjoying whatever treats they've bought, and suddenly Liam's struck by a memory from uni, one she hasn't thought about in a very long time.

Harry had a part-time job working in a bakery during their second year of uni; he used to boast that he was a proper baker, even though Liam knew he wasn't actually allowed to bake anything. He ran the cash register and helped sweep up at the end of the day, but she let him live out this absurd fantasy he seemed to have about being a real baker.

She would visit him at work on days where she didn't have afternoon classes and he'd slip her free sweets and cups of tea when nobody was looking. The thing is, the bakery he worked for was owned by an elderly couple who were as much in love with each other as Harry and Liam were, and they absolutely adored Liam visiting. Therefore Harry didn't really _need_ to sneak anything to Liam, but she still went along with his ridiculous secrecy because it made him happy.

Sometimes she would try to write songs while sitting in the bakery and Harry would join in, although he'd usually start singing about whatever pastry was on special that day, which usually ended with both of them in fits of laughter. On days where Liam came in after a particularly draining day at uni, Harry would sing 'Hot Cross Buns' over and over until she couldn't beg him to stop anymore because she was laughing too hard.

As Liam stares through the bakery window she wonders what happened to the boy who used to make her laugh at the drop of a hat. She turns away from the window and continues walking down the street, only making it a few feet away before she stops and digs her phone out of her bag.

There's still no message from Harry and Liam's finally reached her breaking point.

"That's that," she mumbles to herself as she opens her contacts and clicks on Harry's name. Her fingers shake a little as she goes to delete his number and she ends up missing the button entirely and somehow scrolls to the end of his listing instead. It's there that she sees it, the obvious explanation as to why Harry hasn't replied written in bright blue text: _unblock this caller_.

Liam had entirely forgotten that she'd blocked Harry's number weeks and weeks ago. She feels like an absolute idiot for not remembering it before and there's a surge of hope as she quickly goes back to her messages to check for a reply, but there's still no answer to her text.

In a flash, Liam decides to call him and find out once and for all if he'll hear her out. She gets as far as re-opening her contacts before she realizes she's being absolutely ridiculous. Just as she's about to lock her phone again, she notices a red dot over her voicemails and when she clicks on it she sees no less than a dozen voicemails waiting for her. They're all from Harry.

Liam scrolls down to the bottom of the list and recognizes the date of the first one as being the night after she moved in with Niall. She takes a deep breath before she presses play and holds the phone up to her ear, subconsciously reminding herself to just keep breathing.

"Liam, where are you? I thought you'd come back but you're not here and I just… I'm sorry, okay? God, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean anything I said last night, I was tired and frustrated and I just… I didn't mean it. Please, come home. Call me. Let me explain, please. I love you."

"Oh my god," Liam murmurs as she scrolls through the list again, stopping and hitting play on the voicemail that she notices is from the same night that they met at the party Louis took her to. Her whole body feels like it's shaking as she brings the phone back up to her ear and her heart is pounding so hard within her chest that she feels like she may faint at any moment.

"Liam," Harry says, drunkenly drawing out the sounds in her name, "Liam, I know you d-don't wanna talk to me, you made that very c-c-clear earlier, but you never gave me a chance to ex-explain. I just talked to Ed fucking Sheeran, can you b-believe that? Fuck, I wish you were here. Why aren't you here? Why did you leave? Why'd you… fuck. 'm drunk, Liam. 'm so drunk. Miss you, miss you so much. You looked so pretty tonight, always so pretty. Beautiful. My beautiful Liam. Come back, okay? Come back to the club and we'll talk and we'll have some drinks and everything will be great, right? We'll be together. Together is b-better, right? 'm all alone. I don't wanna be alone. Wanna be with you."

"Jesus, Harry," Liam says, her voice catching on a sob as she pulls her phone away from her ear and looks at the remaining voicemails. She can't possibly listen to them all; there's no telling what manner of heartbreak is recorded in each message.

She goes back to the top of the list, the dates of the two most recent ones catching her eye: there's one from last night, not long after she sent him the text, and the newest one is from an hour ago. Liam quickly presses play on the one from last night, wiping her eyes as she waits to hear Harry's voice and readies herself for the worst.

"Liam, just… just what do you think you're playing at? You haven't answered any of my texts or calls for weeks, you practically ran away from me at that party and then you leave me that fucking singing voicemail that just…" Harry groans softly, sounding hurt as he continues, "and what, now you text me 'I'm sorry'? That's it? Is that supposed to erase the last two months? What are you--" Harry cuts off and Liam checks to see if that's the end of the voicemail, quickly putting the phone back to her ear when she sees that it's not. "I don't know what you want from me anymore, Liam. I've done everything I could think of to try and fix this. I can't do anything if you won't talk to me, goddammit, why didn't you answer me?" Harry's voice catches and Liam shuts her eyes as she hears him draw a ragged breath. "I've been trying like hell to get over you, y'know. I thought I had. You can't do this to me, Liam, you can't. You just… I can't do this anymore."

Liam sniffles loudly and wipes at her eyes again as she forces herself to press play on the last message, recorded earlier this morning. She's hoping against hope that there's a reason behind Harry calling her again. After how he ended his last message, there just has to be.

"Y'know, I really should be used to you not picking up your phone by now," Harry says with a soft laugh. "But I get my hopes up every time, and every time I hear your voice on your message and I feel my heart break a little more." Harry pauses for a moment, clearing his throat before he starts again. "I just… I talked to Ed this morning. He, um, he mentioned that he knows you. How funny is that? Small world. Anyway, uhh, he told me he heard your album and that… well, first I can't believe you recorded an album, Liam, that's brilliant. I can't wait to hear it. I know it's going to be amazing. I… um, well, the second thing I guess is that he said you wrote all the songs about me? I don't… I dunno what to say, honestly. I…" Harry laughs, "shit, I had this all planned out, I swear, I was going to apologize for what I said last night and tell you that I think you recording an album is the best news I've heard in a long time. I listen to that singing voicemail you left me all the time, y'know. It's… well, it's fucking heartbreaking, but it's you. And… um, I was… I was going to tell you I love you. Because, well, I do. I'll always love you, Liam. I thought maybe between getting your text last night and talking to Ed this morning that you might still love me too but now… now I don't know. I just wish you'd talk to me again, Liam. I miss you. Anyway, um, yeah, that's… that's all, I guess. Same as always. I miss you and I love you."

Liam can't stop the tears falling from her eyes after listening to Harry's last voicemail. She spares a moment to think how ridiculous she must look, crying in the middle of the street, but she just can't stop crying. Liam curses herself, she knows she has to pull herself together so she can call Harry back.

"Stop it, stop crying," Liam tells herself. She tilts her head back and looks up at the sky, closing her eyes and basking in the sunshine as she takes a long, deep breath. After a few seconds she opens her eyes again and looks back down at her phone.

Liam bites her lip nervously as she presses Harry's number, holding her phone up to her ear to listen to the line ring. Her heart is pounding. She can't let herself wonder about what's going to happen if Harry doesn't answer, but she has to have hope that he will.

There's a moment of silence when the line stops ringing and Liam's heart leaps into her throat, not knowing if this means his voicemail has picked up or if the call got disconnected.

"Liam?" Harry's voice sounds hesitant and nervous, but it's still music to Liam's ears. She sighs heavily in relief and suddenly there are tears in her eyes again.

"Harry," she says despite feeling choked up.

"Liam," Harry repeats, sounding relieved as well. "Did you, um, did you get my message?"

"Yes," Liam replies, laughing a little even as she wipes her tears away, "yes, I did. I'm so sorry I didn't get them before."

"God," Harry laughs, "I… I can't believe it's really you. I almost didn't believe it, when I saw your name."

"Harry," Liam says softly, positive that she's about to start crying all over again. "I--"

"Can I see you?" Harry asks quickly, then immediately goes quiet. "I'm sorry, you're probably busy, what with the album and everything."

"No, Harry, I…" Liam laughs as she feels her cheeks going red. "I'd lo-- I want to see you."

"Really?" Harry sounds surprised, as though he really didn't expect Liam to say yes. "I'm, um, I'm at home, d'you want me to send a car for you? Or I can give you the address, it's--"

"Is it still the same?" Liam asks.

"Y-Yeah."

"I remember where it is. I'll head there now, if that's alright."

"Of course it is, I'll, um…" Harry pauses and clears his throat. "I'll wait."

"I'll be there soon," Liam answers with a soft sigh. "Promise."

"Promise?"

Liam bites her lip, fighting her smile. "Promise," she repeats.

*

The building looks the same as it did the day Liam left. She didn't expect it to look any different, but somehow it's comforting that nothing's really changed. She holds her breath as she presses the ringer for Harry's flat, jumping a little when the door buzzes loudly mere seconds later.

Liam chooses to take the stairs instead of using the elevator, if only to give her a few extra minutes to compose herself. The closer she gets to Harry's front door the more nervous and excited she becomes. She hadn't realized just how much she has riding on this until she reaches the top floor and her heart feels like it's about to beat straight out of her chest.

"It's fine," Liam tells herself, "just breathe. Breathing is good."

Liam inhales deeply as she lifts her hand up to Harry's door, shutting her eyes before she gathers the courage to knock. She's a bit startled when the door opens almost as quickly as the door downstairs had buzzed, and she opens her eyes to see Harry standing there. They both stare at the other quietly for a moment and Liam notices that he's slightly out of breath, as though he'd sprinted to the door, and the thought makes Liam giggle softly.

"Hi," Harry says, breaking the silence and offering her a smile.

"Hi," Liam replies, her nerves all coming back in one fell swoop. She doesn't know what to do; it's as though she's staring at him for the first time all over again and can't even remember her own name.

"C'mon in," Harry says as he steps aside, pulling the door with him so she can walk through.

"Thanks," Liam says quietly as she crosses the threshold and stands just out of the way of the door so Harry can shut it behind her. She hesitates before going any further because it's not her flat anymore, not really. Just because it all looks the same doesn't mean a thing.

"D'you…" Harry clears his throat, "d'you want something to drink, maybe? Tea?"

"Tea sounds good." Liam tries to smile at him despite her starting to feel overwhelmed and wondering if this was a good idea after all.

Harry heads towards the kitchen and Liam follows slowly, anxiously wringing her hands together as she glances around. The flat is a little messier than she remembers, but the feel of it is still the same. She spots several little baubles that she bought when they first moved in and it both warms her heart and makes it ache to see that Harry didn't get rid of them.

Liam takes a seat on one of the stools at the kitchen island and slips the strap of her bag over her head, setting it down on the countertop as she watches Harry make tea for the both of them. She wants to say something, start the conversation that they need to have, but she can't even think of where to begin.

"Here you go," Harry says as he slides a mug across the island towards Liam.

"Thanks," she replies as she wraps her hands around it and concentrates on the warmth spreading through her. She's fighting to come up with the right thing to say, going over a hundred different possibilities at once but still coming up short.

"What did you mean, earlier," Harry says, taking initiative where Liam keeps failing, "when you said you didn't get my messages before."

"I, um…" Liam avoids looking Harry in the eyes, feeling ashamed for what she's about to admit. "I'd blocked your number, before."

"Oh."

"I never replied because I didn't get them," Liam goes on to explain. "I only just saw your voicemails this morning… all of them."

"Jesus," Harry breathes out as he covers his face with one of his hands. "I don't even know how many I left you, you probably think…" Harry shakes his head. "I don't know what you'd think, actually."

It stings, knowing that Liam screwed this up so badly that Harry feels like he doesn't know her anymore.

"I didn't listen to all of them," Liam admits. "Just, um, the one from the night after I left, when you asked me to come home. And then the one from the night at that club." Liam takes a breath and nervously fidgets with her hair, tucking it behind her ear. "And then the ones from last night and this morning."

"I called you? After you left me at the club?" Harry asks and Liam nods, still avoiding his eyes. "Jesus, I don't remember that. What did I say?"

"You told me that you met Ed Sheeran," Liam says, letting herself laugh just a little. "And that you were very drunk."

"Shit," Harry says as he laughs, "I must've talked so much shit that night, dunno why Ed even bothers with me."

"You, um, you also said you missed me." Liam takes a chance and lifts her eyes up from her mug and looks at Harry. She inhales sharply when their eyes meet and she has to fight not to look away. "And you called me beautiful, a-and asked me to come back. Said you didn't want to be alone."

"I said that?" Harry asks, humming thoughtfully when Liam nods. "Sounds like me."

"Harry, I--"

"You were beautiful that night," Harry interrupts, his voice soft. "I couldn't believe it was you, at first. I thought maybe I was dreaming or something. But then I thought, if this really is a dream then maybe she'll actually talk to me."

Liam stays quiet and watches Harry carefully, afraid that anything she'd say might be the wrong thing.

"Then you did talk to me, but…" Harry shakes his head and looks at her with hurt in his eyes, "nothing you said made any sense, Liam."

"I was angry," Liam says suddenly, surprising herself as much as Harry. "I'd been trying to get over you and then there you were, with…" Liam stops herself and Harry sighs loudly.

"You're still not making any sense," he says, his voice changing from hurt to frustrated. "I wasn't there _with_ anyone. There were people from the label there to introduce me to other people, but it wasn't like that, Liam. I don't know what you think you saw, but it wasn't _like_ that."

"I thought… I-I thought--" Liam's voice catches as her throat closes up. She's trying so hard not to cry, but the way Harry's looking at her makes her feel so many things that she can't really help herself.

"What? What did you think, Liam?"

"I thought you were cheating on me!" Liam sobs.

"What?" Harry asks, all trace of anger gone from his voice. He sounds as though his heart just broke into a million pieces with no hope of ever being put back together.

"I thought…" Liam can't bring herself to say it again so instead she decides to go another route. "You were never around, Harry. You were always out with god knows who doing god knows what, staying out until 3 or 4 in the morning and never telling me anything! I'd ask you about your plans and you'd give me some vague bullshit answer."

"That's because I didn't know, Liam. Half the time I didn't know what the fuck I was doing because all I was told was an address and a time, alright?" Harry sighs in exasperation. "How could you think I was cheating on you?"

"How could I not?" Liam cries. "D'you know what you find when you google Harry Styles? Hundreds of pictures with you and other girls. What was I supposed to think, Harry, when you were gone for hours and hours and not telling me a fucking thing?"

"You could've asked me! You could've come with me--"

"What, and be your tag along girlfriend who never lets you out of her sight? Become someone who was holding you back? Or just another girl in the background?" Liam shakes her head and laughs humorlessly. "No, thank you. I didn't want to have to see it with my own eyes."

"There wasn't anything to see!" Harry shouts. "I never cheated on you!"

"I don't know if I can believe that," Liam says, her voice wavering slightly. She wants so badly to believe him but there's still a voice in her head that tells her not to.

"Here," Harry says as he pulls his phone from his pocket and pushes it across the island towards Liam. "Call Paul."

"Who's--"

"He's my bodyguard," Harry says with a huff. "Apparently I need a bodyguard." He shakes his head and groans, annoyed with himself for getting off-track so quickly. "Anyway, he was with me every single night. Call him, he'll tell you that I always went home alone. I came home to you, Liam. Even after you left, I always came home hoping you'd be here."

Liam stares at the phone for a long while, trying to process all of this information at once. She must wait too long for Harry's liking because he goes to grab the phone and dial the number himself, but she's quick to grab his wrist.

"No, you don't… you don't have to." Liam swallows hard. "I… I believe you."

Harry lets out a sharp breath followed by a shaky laugh. "I don't know how you could ever think I'd cheat on you, Liam. I could never hurt you like that, I love you too much."

"I love you," Liam blurts out, "Harry, I love you too. I tried not to but I don't think I ever stopped."

She starts to say something else but it's lost when Harry leans across the width of the island and kisses her, slipping his hand behind her neck as her hand still grips his other wrist. They're both breathless when Harry pulls away, and he laughs as he presses his forehead against hers.

"I'm about to climb over this stupid fucking table," he murmurs, "just to get you in my arms again."

"You'll hurt yourself," Liam says with a soft laugh as she nudges her nose against his, seeking out his lips again for another kiss.

Harry groans and pulls himself away from Liam to make his way around the island to get to her. Liam stands up from the stool so quickly it falls to the floor with a clatter and she looks at it with horror for a moment before Harry reaches her and pulls her into his arms.

"I'm so--" she starts to say, but Harry cuts her off with a kiss that makes Liam so weak she has to cling to Harry just to ensure she stays on her own two feet.

"Stop apologizing," Harry says, his mouth barely a breath away from Liam's.

"I'm s--" Liam shuts her eyes and laughs, opening them again after thinking of something else to say, "I love you."

Harry smiles as he kisses her again. "I'd much rather hear you say that."

Liam tucks her face in the crook of Harry's neck and breathes a sigh of relief. She didn't think it would be so easy for the two of them to slip back into what they had before and it honestly frightens her a little. What happens if history repeats itself and something else makes Liam think the worst, forcing her to leave all over again?

"Harry, what if--" Liam's voice gives out before she can complete her thought. Liam isn't even sure she knew what she was going to say or whether Harry would understand even if she managed to say what she wanted to.

"You've got to trust me, Liam," Harry says softly as he continues to hold her close. "Like you used to, remember?"

"We used to tell each other everything," Liam replies. She doesn't mean it as an insult towards Harry, but rather lamenting the fact that somehow they both fell out of touch with the other and didn't realize it until it was almost too late. Liam feels responsible for the bulk of it, though, and she can't help but worry that it could happen again.

"I never meant to make you feel like I was keeping anything from you," Harry says, coaxing Liam to lift her head so he can look her in the eyes. "Everything just… it all happened so fast, y'know? It felt like one day you were here and everything was great and then the next you were gone… and I felt like it was all my fault."

"No," Liam says, her bottom lip wobbling a little. "It wasn't your fault, Harry, it was mine. If I'd just--"

"Hey, no, Liam." Harry cups her face gently and kisses her. "Please, don't cry. It's my fault too."

"B-But…" Liam takes a deep breath, "all this time I thought you cheated on me and you _didn't_ and I never even asked, I--"

"Liam," Harry says in a soft, firm voice. "Please, calm down." His hands drop back down to her waist as he presses his forehead against hers and lets out a breath. "It all makes sense now, I can't believe I didn't see it before."

"What?" Liam asks.

"D'you know how many times I went over that fight we had? How many times I replayed it in my head, trying to figure out what I'd done that made you so angry?" Harry shakes his head and sighs. "I thought you were just overreacting or something, I… fuck, I don't know what I thought."

"I thought you were admitting it," Liam says quietly, dropping her gaze downward so she's staring at Harry's chest rather than looking him in the eyes. "When you told me to leave, that you didn't need this, I thought…" Liam's breath hitches and Harry tugs her against him.

"I didn't mean it, god, I _never_ \--" Harry gasps softly and drops his head down to Liam's shoulder. "I shouldn't have told you to leave, I never wanted you to go. I was just so exhausted and I didn't want to fight, I just…"

"I know," Liam murmurs.

"I'm so sorry." Harry tilts his head back and as Liam looks up at his face, her heart aches as she sees the tears streaming down his face. "You've said it so many times already when I should've been the one apologizing. I-I'm sorry."

"Harry," Liam says as she takes his face in her hands and wipes away his tears. "Please, just…"

"I'm sorry," he repeats. "Please, Liam, forgive me."

"Of course I do," she says as she kisses him. "I should be asking--"

"I forgive you," Harry says quickly as he steals another kiss. "I'm just… fuck, I'm so relieved to have you back." He pauses for a moment before he asks, "I do… have you back, right?"

Liam closes her eyes and chuckles softly before she opens them again and gives Harry a smile. "I said I love you, didn't I?"

"You did say that." Harry smiles back at her.

"We--" Liam starts as Harry leans in for another kiss, "we do have more to talk about, though."

"I know," Harry replies. "And we will. We'll talk so much you'll get sick of my voice."

"Harry…"

"You'll be begging me to shut up and I'll just keep talking and talking."

"Like you are now?" Liam asks, giggling when Harry smirks at her.

"You love me." He kisses her. "Say it."

"I love you," Liam replies dutifully even as she rolls her eyes.

"I love you too," Harry says, kissing her again. "I've missed you."

"I missed you too," Liam admits. "Even when I didn't want to, I missed you."

Liam's eyes flutter shut when Harry kisses her this time, slow and thorough. His hands slide underneath the hem of her shirt to touch her bare skin and she shudders against him, her hands slipping away from his face to hook around his neck so her fingers tug at his hair. He moans into her mouth and his hands start roaming, one going up the back of her shirt further as the other finds its way down to her arse. Liam gasps as Harry pulls her closer against him and she can feel him start to fatten up in his jeans.

"Harry," she breathes out, pulling her mouth away from his and gasping again as he starts kissing her neck instead, "Harry, wait."

He pauses, his hands still on her and his mouth open against her neck, and groans softly.

"'m sorry," he says, his voice rough. "I just… _missed_ you."

"I know," Liam says as she tries to make her voice sound steady, not desperate. "But maybe we should take it slow."

"Slow," Harry repeats, like he's getting a feel for the word in his mouth. He lifts his head and offers her a smile. "Right. I can do slow."

"Can you?" Liam asks with a breathless laugh. Harry groans again and shuts his eyes.

"Not if you keep looking at me like that."

"Wha--" Liam slaps Harry lightly on his chest. "I'm not the one acting like a bloody caveman, thank you very much."

"A caveman?" Harry hums thoughtfully and there's a glint in his eyes that Liam should know means he's planning something. "I can do that."

"No, Harry, no!" Liam shrieks as she's suddenly lifted into the air and slung over Harry's shoulder. She shouts for him to put her down but he doesn't listen, instead he carries her out of the kitchen and it only takes one guess for Liam to know where he's headed.

Liam gasps when Harry slides her off of his shoulder and she lands on her back in the middle of his bed. He tries to look sheepish but he can't quite keep the smirk off of his face as he climbs on top of her, not quite pinning her down but Liam has a feeling she wouldn't be able to get away even if she wanted to.

"This is not taking it slow," she says, tapping the tip of her finger against Harry's nose.

"Excuse me, perhaps all I wanted was a nap." Harry grins as he leans down and rubs his nose against Liam's, purposefully avoiding pressing their lips together. "You're the one with naughty thoughts."

"I don't believe you," Liam murmurs as she curls her fingers into the fabric of Harry's shirt, tugging him down closer to her as she tilts her head up to get a kiss.

"Well, if you're offering…" Harry chuckles as he lowers himself onto Liam, pressing against her as they kiss. Liam whimpers softly into Harry's mouth as he starts to rut against her while his hands slide down to her hips, his fingers pressing into her skin through the denim of her jeans as they move further down to grip her thighs.

"Harry," she says, softly at first but her voice gets stronger as she says it again and Harry breaks away from her with a groan. "I'm sorry--"

"What did I say about you apologizing?" Harry asks, his voice slightly muffled from where his mouth is pressed against her collarbone.

Liam laughs, she can't help it. "I just… I dunno if we should… y'know, until we've talked."

"Liam, I know we still have a lot to talk about but…" Harry sighs, "we've only just managed to come back to each other, shouldn't we celebrate a little?"

"I just…" Liam takes a breath, "I just don't know if I'm ready to… it's been a while, alright? And I just feel like--"

"It's been a while for me too, Liam. Or…" Harry slides off of her and gives her a look that she can't quite understand but it makes her nervous. "D'you think I was sleeping around, trying to get over you?"

"I didn't say that--"

"Because I wasn't. I wouldn't. I thought I made that clear--"

"I know, Harry, I didn't--"

"Do you? Or do you still not trust me, Liam?" Harry sits up and rubs his face as he lets out a frustrated breath. "I didn't know where you were, Liam, and I still _never_ thought that you'd…"

"Don't you put that on me, Harry. Don't you dare--"

"Where were you? I thought you'd gone home or something, but then I saw you at that party and--"

"For fuck's sake, I was with Niall!" Liam huffs. "I've been staying at his this whole time, and don't look at me like that, Harry."

"I'm not--"

"I wasn't sleeping with Niall, if that's what you're wondering. He's only ever been a friend to me, and you should know that."

"I do, I do know that." Harry tries to put his arms around her but Liam shies away from him. "I just… when I saw you at that party, you were with someone and I," Harry laughs and shakes his head, "I dunno what I thought, I was just so jealous. The thought of you with anyone else just hurt so much."

"You were jealous?" Liam blinks. "Of Louis?"

"I didn't know who he was, fuck, it took everything not to just go over there and punch him just for looking at you."

"Jesus," Liam breathes out. "Harry, Louis is the one who's producing my album. He brought me to that party to make connections, not to get in my pants." She huffs out another breath before adding, "plus, he's gay."

"He's gay?" Liam nods, laughing a little at the fact that Harry chose that one tiny bit of information to dwell on.

"I can't believe you were thinking of punching him, you really are a bloody caveman," Liam says as she lightly shakes her head in disbelief.

"Apparently," Harry replies with a low chuckle as he reaches out and puts his hand on top of Liam's thigh. "Can't help myself when it comes to you."

"Harry," Liam says, and he immediately takes his hand back.

"Sorry, I forgot." Harry sighs. "Slow."

Liam lets out a soft breath as she carefully moves closer to Harry, reaching out to cup his jaw with her hand so she can pull his face towards her own. Harry's eyes dart back and forth between Liam's mouth and her eyes, confusion written all over his face.

"Liam--" She cuts him off with a kiss but pulls back a few seconds later so she can speak.

"Maybe going a little faster isn't such a bad idea," she murmurs as she slides her hand into Harry's hair and leans in to kiss him again.

This time it's Liam who pulls Harry down onto the bed, keeping her fingers twisted in his hair as they kiss and silently urging him to go further as she presses her hips up against his. Harry moans and slips his hand under her shirt this time, pushing it up slowly at first but when Liam doesn't protest he continues upward until he reaches her breasts. Liam gasps when he takes one in his hand and squeezes before he pushes her bra aside and touches her bare skin.

Liam follows suit and takes her hand out of Harry's hair so she has both to pull at his shirt, trying to get it off without losing too much time of his mouth not being on hers. After tossing his own shirt aside, Harry pulls Liam up and away from the bed to get her shirt over her head, going back to kissing her before he gets his hands on the clasp of her bra.

Harry starts trailing a line of kisses down Liam's neck and towards her breasts at the same time he moves his hand down to the button of her jeans. Liam gasps out his name when his mouth closes around her nipple and his hand freezes, hovering over her zipper.

"Too fast?" he asks, lifting his head away from her breast to look at her face.

"Don't stop," she pants as she drops her hand to her zipper, opening it for him. "Please."

Liam catches the smile on Harry's face before he leans in to kiss her and it distracts her just enough that she's not expecting to feel Harry's hand on her as quickly as she does. He starts with a gentle press of his finger against her clit, but it sends a jolt through Liam's entire body. She whimpers and digs her fingers into his back when he moves his hand down further, pushing her underwear aside to slide a finger inside of her as far as it'll go.

"Harry," she moans as she rocks her hips down against his hand. "Fuck, Harry."

"Yeah," he breathes out as he puts his mouth against her neck. "God, Liam." He's trying to kiss her neck as he fingers her but he's so overwhelmed that it's proving to be too much for him to handle at the moment. Liam can't blame him in the slightest; she feels as though she may come any second and they've only just begun.

She whines when he pushes another finger into her, it's both too much and not enough. Harry's panting in her ear and Liam can feel his hips beside her, grinding against the bed in the same rhythm he's using with his fingers. Liam tries to squeeze her hand between them, barely managing to get her hand down to where she can pull Harry's jeans open. He groans loudly when she finally grabs his cock and his fingers falter inside of her.

"Fuck," he says roughly. "Liam, you--"

"Please," she says, twisting her hand around him and squeezing. "Please, I… I want…"

"Yeah?" Harry grunts. "What d'you want? Tell me." He groans and starts pumping his fingers in and out of her at a maddening pace, making Liam gasp and moan.

"You," she cries, "y-you, fuck! Harry, please."

"God," Harry's voice cracks, "you've got me, Liam. 'm yours, fuck, come for me. Please, need to make you come."

"Harry," Liam pants, repeating his name over and over as he keeps up the pace with his fingers, sending her over the edge in a matter of seconds. He kisses her deeply as she comes down, whimpering against his mouth as he pulls his fingers out of her. Harry grunts softly when Liam strokes his cock and he pinches her hip.

"Not too fast?" he asks, soothing the spot he pinched with a gentle hand.

"No," Liam replies as she shakes her head. "Not finished, are you?"

Harry chuckles and presses his hips forward. "Definitely not."

"Good." Liam smiles as Harry kisses her. He rolls over and fumbles around in the drawer in his bedside table, leaving Liam to her own devices. She pushes her jeans down past her thighs and kicks them off the rest of the way, doing the same with her underwear before Harry rolls back over. He's lost his jeans as well and has a condom in his hand, but he pauses and just looks at Liam.

She starts blushing under his gaze, well aware that she's fully naked in his bed as his eyes roam over the length of her body.

"What?" she asks with a nervous giggle.

"You're beautiful," he says as he leans down to kiss her. "Missed you."

"Missed you too," she murmurs, running her hands up and down his chest in a familiar way. "Now, um…" She looks pointedly down between them and Harry laughs.

"So much for taking it slow, hmm?"

"Think we're well past that," Liam replies with a giggle.

"Suppose so."

Liam watches Harry's face as he rolls the condom onto himself, snickering softly when his expression changes and he winces a little.

"Shut up," he mumbles. "It's been a minute, yeah?"

"I didn't say anything," Liam replies, not even bothering to hide her smile. Harry narrows his eyes at her as he climbs on top of her, kissing her smile as he pins her arms above her head with just one hand.

Liam tests his grip on her arms, shivering when she can't move more than a few inches. She moans and rocks her hips up against Harry's, shivering again when she feels his cock against her. Harry pulls away just enough to look down as he guides his cock into her, pushing in slower than he ever has before just to make Liam more desperate.

"Harry," she whines, "Harry, please."

"'m sorry, thought you wanted to take it slow." He grins down at her and she groans in frustration.

"You are such a--" Liam gasps when Harry suddenly pushes in the rest of the way, filling her up completely and making her lose her train of thought.

"You were saying?" he asks as he noses against Liam's throat, teasing her skin before he soothes it with kisses.

"I love you," Liam breathes out in a rush. Harry moans and rocks his hips into her.

"Say it again," he begs.

"I love you," Liam gasps as he starts to pick up the pace. "I love you, I love you."

"God," Harry moans brokenly, "Liam, love you. Love you so much."

Any further declarations are lost as Liam pulls Harry down into a kiss, both of them panting into the other's mouth as Harry thrusts into her. Harry's grip on Liam's wrist loosens just enough so that he can link his fingers with hers, letting Liam's other hand drop down to his shoulders. Harry's gripping Liam's hip so hard with his other hand that it's sure to leave bruises and Liam can't find it in herself to even care. Her hand roams from Harry's shoulders to his neck, back up into the tangle of his hair as they keep up their desperate kiss.

"Harry," Liam breaks away to moan, high in her throat, "Harry, I'm--"

"Yeah," Harry grunts, "Liam, Liam, c'mon."

Liam cries out as her orgasm washes over her, her legs tightening around Harry's waist as she shakes underneath him. Harry moans as he drops his head to her shoulder, fucking into her at a relentless pace until his hips start to jerk and he shakes as he comes inside her.

"God," he breathes out hotly against Liam's neck. Liam makes a soft noise of agreement as she rubs Harry's back, kissing every inch of his skin that she can reach.

"Love you," she murmurs against his shoulder. Harry lifts his head and seeks out her mouth, kissing her soundly.

"Love you too."


	10. Chapter 10

Liam doesn't remember falling asleep next to Harry and she's a little disoriented when she first wakes up in his bed. She's curled against his chest and she can feel his soft breathing against her hair, making her smile when she remembers where she is. She carefully extracts herself from Harry's arms and slides off the edge of the bed as quietly as she can so as to not disturb him. He snuffles a little in his sleep and shifts, rolling into the spot that Liam left next to him and she smiles as she stifles a giggle from escaping.

Liam reaches for the first article of clothing she sees and ends up grabbing Harry's shirt off the floor and slipping it over her head. She looks around for her jeans but she can't really remember where she dropped them in the heat of the moment. After a few seconds of haphazard searching Liam decides to steal one of the blankets off the foot of the bed and wrap herself up in that instead as she leaves the bedroom.

Harry's guitar is leaning against the side of the couch in the living room and the surface of the coffee table is covered in various bits of paper that Liam has to stop herself from looking through. Instead she heads towards where she knows Harry keeps blank paper and steals a couple sheets along with a pen before heading back to the couch and curling up at one end.

She woke up with a couple of lyrics and a melody swirling around in her head and she's anxious to get them down before she forgets them. The more lyrics she scribbles down the more pop into her head and in what seems like no time at all she's got nearly a full song written down.

Liam bites her lip and glances back towards the bedroom, trying to determine whether or not Harry's still asleep as she reaches for his guitar. He hasn't made any noise that would give away his being awake, so Liam tries to strum as softly as she can so as to not disturb him.

There's no telling how long Liam spends composing the melody to go underneath her lyrics but it's apparently long enough that she loses herself in the process completely and therefore doesn't hear it when Harry does wake up.

She jumps and gives a startled shout when Harry's arms suddenly wrap around her from behind and he chuckles in her ear.

"Sorry, love, thought you heard me."

"Obviously not," Liam replies with a breathless laugh. Harry slips his hand under her chin and tilts her head so he can kiss her, both of them smiling when he pulls away.

"You weren't in bed when I woke up," Harry says with a pout.

"Sorry," Liam says as she kisses his pout away. "I had an idea for a song and I didn't want to disturb you."

"'m just glad you're still here." Harry's arms tighten around her a little and he hums. "Was a little afraid you left again."

"I wouldn't do that again, I--" Liam squeaks when one of Harry's hands slides further down and his palm presses against her breast.

"Is this my shirt?" He hums with amusement as she tries to shy away from his touch.

"I-- Harry!" Liam shrieks and tries to press her legs together to prevent Harry's hand from wandering further. She nearly drops his guitar in the process but he doesn't seem all that bothered.

"And no knickers?" Harry tuts. "What a naughty girl you are, Liam."

"I couldn't _find_ them," she gasps. "Harry, stop it!"

"Not unless you come back to bed with me," he says as he presses his mouth against her neck.

"Ha-Harry," Liam says, her voice breaking as she lets out a moan, "I'm in the middle of something."

"So am I." Liam can feel his smirk against her skin and she melts a little before she turns her head to press their mouths together.

"Okay, okay," Liam mumbles against Harry's mouth, trying to pull away so she can stand up.

"Yeah?" Harry asks with a grin, practically hanging over the back of the couch to get to her.

"I'll come back to bed," Liam promises, "but I'm bringing the guitar with me."

Harry considers it a moment. "Sounds like it could be kinky."

"Oh my--" Harry bursts out laughing and Liam smacks his shoulder before she shoves him away, grabbing the guitar and making a break for the bedroom with Harry at her heels.

It's a lucky thing that the guitar doesn't get destroyed in the process, especially given that Harry tugs it out of Liam's hands and lets it clatter to the floor. She tries to protest, even goes so far as to crawl out from under Harry to get it, but Harry's quick to distract her.

"You're such a menace," Liam murmurs some time later, when they're both catching their breath and pressed close together.

"You love me," Harry replies, smiling as he kisses her shoulder. "Will you play me what you wrote?"

"Oh, now you want to hear it?" Liam asks as she raises one eyebrow. "I tried to play it for you earlier and--"

"I had to wake up properly," Harry insists, "now I'm ready and alert, promise."

"Ridiculous," Liam mutters as she crawls over to the edge of the bed to grab Harry's guitar. She's half-expecting Harry to try and start something again while her back is turned but he's just watching her with a fond look on his face when she settles with the guitar in her lap.

"I like this," Harry says, his smile slipping into a smirk before Liam's eyes.

"What? Me playing your guitar?" Liam asks as she rolls her eyes.

"You, _naked_ , playing my guitar." Liam laughs and Harry just keeps smirking at her. "It's a great sight."

"Shut up," Liam mumbles, adjusting the guitar so she covers more of herself up.

"C'mon now, don't be shy." Harry reaches out and tugs on the neck of the guitar, smirking when Liam doesn't let it go. "I didn't get to see everything earlier."

"You've seen everything before."

"Yeah, but what if something's changed? Maybe you got a tattoo that I haven't seen."

"I didn't," Liam replies with a snicker. "'m not you."

"Fair," Harry grins, "y'know, I almost got a tattoo of you."

"You did not."

"I thought about it," Harry swears, "even decided where I was gonna put it."

"Harry--"

"Here," he says, touching his back over his left shoulder. "That way, I could show it off to people and say, 'here's the girl I love, who's always got my back.'"

" _Harry_ ," Liam groans, hiding her face against the guitar. "You're awful."

"I did get something new, though." Harry's smile turns less joking as Liam lifts her head. "D'you wanna see?"

"Yeah," Liam answers softly. Harry rolls onto his back and starts pulling the sheets down from around his waist and Liam groans again. "Harry, I swear, if you show me your dick, I'll--"

"That's not _new_ , Liam." Harry rolls his eyes. He exposes his hipbones to reveal a set of laurels that Liam had seen earlier but hadn't examined very carefully due to being distracted by other things.

"They're beautiful," Liam says. Harry gestures for her to come closer and it takes a minute for Liam to do so, not entirely trusting that he's not trying to start round three.

Harry rests a finger in the middle of the laurel across his left hip and upon closer examination Liam realizes why: her name is there, inscribed on the leaf in what she recognizes as her own handwriting.

"How--" Liam looks up at Harry and sees he's smiling nervously at her. "When?"

"About a week after you left." Harry ducks his head a little. "Told you… I missed you."

Liam carefully sets the guitar down so she can crawl on top of Harry to kiss him, but she doesn't let it go any further than just a kiss. Harry's pouting as she pulls away, but she remains firm.

"You said you wanted to hear the song," she says as she situates the guitar on her lap again. Her eyes drift back to Harry's tattoo and then up to his face, their eyes meeting. She's smiling as her cheeks burn and she drops her gaze down to the guitar, needing to tune it just a little before she can start playing.

She fumbles over the lyrics and screws up a couple of chord changes, having left all of her notes in the living room, but the look on Harry's face makes her feel like she'd just played an entire symphony absolutely perfectly.

"I love it."

Liam wrinkles her nose. "Really?"

"Yeah, really!" Harry laughs. "I'll, um, I'll admit that the chorus threw me at first. Talking about running and such, made me a bit nervous."

"Oh, I didn't--" Liam frowns. "Harry, it's not--"

"No, no, I know." Harry reaches out and takes her hand, pulling her towards him so she has to set the guitar aside so it doesn't get crushed between them. "I understand, I do."

"D'you really like it?" Liam asks bashfully, blushing as Harry kisses her.

"I really, really do." He smiles. "Will you teach it to me?"

"Alright," Liam says. "But first you've got to put some clothes on."

Harry pouts. "Why?"

"Because you're bloody distracting, that's why."

Liam pushes the guitar towards him before she slides off of the bed and finds her own clothes to get dressed in again. Harry grumbles a little but complies, even though he does try and get Liam back into bed more than once.

"No," she says, trying not to laugh. "We're going to work on this in the living room."

"Fine," Harry huffs.

By the time Liam's perfected every verse and Harry's learned every chord it's the middle of the evening. They sit close together on the couch with the Chinese takeaway Harry ordered and Liam's positive she hasn't smiled this much in weeks.

"Is your album all finished?" Harry asks. "I'd really love to hear it."

"Would you?" Liam blinks.

"Yeah, well, someone wouldn't shut up about it."

"Who--" Liam's eyes go wide as she realizes Harry must be talking about Ed, since there can't possibly be anyone else.

"I'm a bit gutted he got to hear it first, if I'm honest." Harry leans in close to Liam and brushes his lips against the skin of her neck. "Doesn't seem fair."

"Well…" Liam says shakily, biting her lip to hold back a moan as Harry kisses her neck. "Things were different, then."

"And now?"

"S'pose you'll be the first to hear every new song I write, won't you?"

"Promise?" Harry asks as he traces his finger along Liam's jawline, tilting her face towards his own. Liam smiles as she kisses him, nodding her head so their noses brush together.

"D'you really want to hear it? I was a bit angry with you when I wrote most of the songs on it."

"I do, I really do. I loved the one you played for me on my voicemail, even if it did break my heart."

"Harry," Liam starts to protest but he's quick to reply.

"It'll be different, this time. Now that I've got you back, those songs will remind me what I've got to lose in case I ever forget again." Harry kisses her. "Which I won't."

"Might hold you to that," Liam says as she pulls herself away from Harry and goes into the kitchen to grab her bag from where she left it on the island. She digs around for her phone and leaves her bag where it's sitting once she's found it, making her way back to the living room as she unlocks it.

Liam pauses mid-step as she scrolls through more than a dozen notifications, her inbox full of texts from Niall and Louis. She hadn't realized just how long she'd been at Harry's until that moment; reading over Niall's texts that started a few hours ago and have grown increasingly worried with every minute passing without a reply from her.

"Oh god," she says as she switches over to Louis' texts, which range from threatening to apologetic and back again.

"What?" Harry asks as he gets up from the couch and goes to her when it becomes clear that she's rather stuck where she is.

"I…" Liam's voice fades as she concentrates more on composing a text to Niall than she does on what she was trying to say.

_**I'm not dead niall omg u watch 2 much law n order!!!!** _

**_HWAT WAS I SUPPSOED TO THNK LAIM I WAS WORIIID!!!!!_ **

**_jfc liam srsly don't fuckin do that again ok?????_ **

Liam laughs softly at Niall's texts, tilting her screen towards Harry so he can read them over her shoulder. He chuckles as he slips his arms around her waist and brushes his nose against the shell of her ear.

"Thought you were dead, hmm?"

"Apparently that's where his mind goes when I don't answer for hours," Liam says as she opens up Louis' texts to send him a reply.

"You were _busy_ ," Harry says, his voice going low as his fingers brush against the skin under the hem of Liam's shirt. Liam slaps Harry's hands lightly and he whines as she goes back to texting.

_**I alredy texted niall but just so u know i'm not dead ok?? also can u send me the album pls thank uuuuuu** _

**_YOU BETTER HAVE A GOOD EXCUSE YOUNG LADY!!!!_ **

**_and yeah I'll email it. where've you been anyway???_ **

Liam lets out a breath and Harry's fingers skim across her skin again, making her squirm when he catches where she's most ticklish. He smiles against her neck and she turns her head just enough so she can press a kiss to the closest spot on his face that she can reach.

_**long story. tell u later.** _

*

Liam isn't expecting Niall to be waiting up for her when she gets back to his flat that night if only due to the late hour. She tries to let herself in as quietly as possible so she doesn't wake him up, only to discover that not only is Niall not asleep but he's waiting for her in the living room along with Louis.

"Wh-What's going on?" she asks as she closes the door behind her and slips her bag off of her shoulder, letting it fall to the floor as she looks back and forth between the two of them.

"I was keeping Niall company," Louis says as he gestures to his right.

"You didn't have to wait up for me," Liam replies.

"I--" Louis starts, but Niall suddenly speaks up and talks over him.

"Where were you all day? D'you have any idea how worried I was when I didn't hear from you?"

"Niall, I--"

"And then I _did_ hear from you and…" Niall shakes his head and laughs humorlessly, "you didn't even tell me anything. Didn't even say you were sorry for putting me through all that."

"I _am_ sorry, but--"

"But what?? Where were you?" Niall demands.

"I was with Harry!" Liam shouts. She surprises herself with her outburst and immediately regrets losing her temper, if only for a moment. "I just… I didn't know how you'd take it, alright? I didn't mean to make you worry about me."

Niall stares at her for a full minute without saying a word. The flat is completely silent and the air is thick with tension as Louis glances nervously back and forth between Liam and Niall, waiting for one of them to be the first to say something.

"I don't understand," Niall says. "I thought… shouldn't you hate Harry? I mean, after what he did, I don't…"

"He didn't," Liam says, "I mean, I thought he did, but he didn't. It was all just a misunderstanding."

"So Ed was right?" Louis asks, and whistles when Liam nods slowly.

"You knew something about this?" Niall asks, turning his accusing gaze to Louis. "And you didn't--"

"No, hang on, I didn't know she was with him." Louis puts his hands up in defense. "I was just there when Ed mentioned the situation might've been different than what Liam thought."

"I didn't tell anyone I was going to see Harry," Liam adds. "I didn't even know I was going to see him today until I listened to his voicemails and…" Liam takes a breath. "It was my fault, Niall. I should've talked to him instead of just leaving like I did."

"Jesus, I…" Niall puts his heads in his hands and lets out a long, deep breath. "I spent half the fucking night thinking I'd, like, pushed you over the edge or something by talking about my date with Jade."

"No, Niall, god, no!" Liam rushes forward and kneels down in front of him to wrap her arms around him tightly. "I'm so sorry I ever made you think that, I genuinely just lost track of time, I swear."

"So… it's over? Just like that, you're back together?" Niall asks.

"I don't--"

"How can you trust him after all this? I know you said it was a misunderstanding but Liam, he did something to make you think the worst and who's to say he didn't actually do it?"

"I just said--"

"But you didn't! All you said was that it was a misunderstanding!"

"He didn't cheat on me!"

"But how do you know?!"

"If I may interject," Louis says cautiously before their argument continues going around in circles, "Ed's the one who said Harry told him about your breakup when he was drunk, right?" Liam nods while Niall crosses his arms, still looking upset. "If he'd had something to hide I doubt he would've been able to keep it to himself if he was as off his arse as Ed said he was. So, while I get where Niall's coming from, I have to say that I think it's more likely that Harry's telling the truth when he says he didn't cheat."

Niall huffs loudly and for a moment Liam's afraid he's about to start in again on their argument and they'll never resolve anything. She waits patiently for him to say something, hoping that he's going to come to his senses and stop hating Harry for something he didn't even do. Liam hates that she's the reason Niall thinks so poorly of Harry in the first place and she wishes there was something, anything she could do to reset everything and go back to when all three of them were friends.

"Fine," Niall mutters at long last. "If you trust him, Liam, then that's all that really matters, innit?"

"I do," Liam replies, but she can't help but frown when she looks at Niall. It's clear that he's still upset about all of this, but Liam doesn't know if there's anything she can do to make it better.

"Thank god for that," Louis says with a long exhale. "Wasn't sure if we were going to settle that, if I'm honest."

"There is something else," Liam says, her voice hesitant. "Harry's, um, he's got a show tomorrow and… he's invited us all to come. If you want."

Liam's almost holding her breath waiting for Niall's response, half expecting him to go off in anger all over again. He stares at Liam for a long time before he shrugs his shoulders and gets up from the couch.

"Niall--"

"I'll think about it," he says curtly over his shoulder. He doesn't stop, doesn't wait to hear if Liam wants to say anything else before he leaves the room and goes into his bedroom, closing the door behind him.

"That went well, I think." Liam gives Louis a blank stare and he shrugs. "For what it's worth, I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," Liam answers with a sigh. "S'pose you were right, weren't you?"

"Well, I wasn't going to say I told you so…" Louis grins and Liam rolls her eyes. "I am glad that you and Harry worked it all out, y'know."

"I know." Liam smiles. "So am I. I mean, we've still got a ways to go, I think, but… it's better."

"Good." Louis smiles at her and as Liam looks back at him she can see the sadness behind his eyes and she reaches out to hold his hand.

"D'you ever think about trying to--"

"Liam, I know where you're going with this, and--"

"But--" Louis puts his hand over her mouth and laughs softly.

"Not everything's got a happy ending. And that's okay." Louis pats her cheek before he stands up, leaving the couch empty for Liam to take. "Get some sleep, yeah?"

"Alright," Liam says as Louis heads for the door. "You'll come tomorrow, right?"

"Course I will." Louis grins. "Gotta meet him for myself, don't I?"

Liam checks her phone after she's all settled on the couch and smiles when she sees that Harry's texted her. She spares a thought about how hard he tried to keep her from leaving before she checks it, feeling her cheeks turning red when she remembers all the things he whispered in her ear to entice her to stay.

_**the bed's too big without you :(** _

_**everything smells like you and it's driving me crazy how much i want you back here** _

_**i should've just wrapped you up in the blankets and kept you here all to myself** _

**_liammmmm come baaaack :( :(_ **

"You… are… ridiculous," Liam says aloud to herself as she texts Harry back, biting her thumb to hold back her grin as she watches her text be delivered and Harry begin composing his response.

_**ridiculously in love with you :)** _

Liam giggles helplessly, covering her eyes for a moment before she writes back _**love u 2.**_

*

The following morning when Liam wakes up she's struck with the worry that yesterday might've not happened at all, that she dreamt the whole thing up. She reaches for her phone and sure enough, Harry's texts from last night are still there and her heart lifts just at the sight of them.

There's a bang from the kitchen a moment later that startles Liam out of her stupor and she gets up from the couch to see Niall standing near the stove with his thumb in his mouth, frowning down at his kettle.

"Everything alright?" she asks hesitantly.

"Burnt m'self," Niall replies, talking around his thumb.

"Niall," Liam replies with a frown, "we should get you a new kettle."

"Nah," Niall says, taking his thumb out of his mouth and turning his back to Liam, "works well enough for me. Don't need a fancy new kettle just for me."

"Niall," Liam says, frowning harder. She has a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that Niall's not just talking about a tea kettle. "I wasn't going to sleep on your couch forever, you know."

"Of course I know that, it's just…" Niall sighs as he turns back around. "I didn't think you'd go back to…"

"To Harry?"

"It was the way you talked about him, Li." Niall shakes his head. "It was like he'd become someone else entirely and that doesn't just _happen_. I know you trust him again and Louis apparently does but I dunno. I just don't know, alright?"

"He's still Harry," Liam says. "Silly, ridiculous Harry. Maybe you're right, maybe he lost sight of that for a while but he didn't _change_."

"Maybe." Niall shrugs, lifting one shoulder as he tilts his head and exhales sharply. "Jade thinks I should be happy for you. Says I ought to support you, being that you're my best friend and all."

"You talked to Jade about this?" Liam asks before she can stop herself. She doesn't mean it negatively, not at all, but it manages to come out a little harsher than she means and Niall huffs a disbelieving breath.

"That's what you do in a relationship, Liam. You talk about what's bothering you."

"I know, I didn't--" Liam sighs softly, deciding to take a different route. "You're official, then? With Jade?"

"Yeah," Niall replies as he starts fussing around with a mug for his tea. "Asked her proper and everything yesterday. Was gonna tell you when I got home, but then you were gone and weren't answering any of my texts and… I didn't know what to think."

"I'm sorry," Liam says earnestly. "I really, truly didn't mean to make you worry like that. I didn't even know how long I'd been at Harry's, honest, I never meant to--"

"I know," Niall says, interrupting before Liam can apologize further. "I know you didn't, Liam."

"I'm happy for you," Liam offers, hopeful that they're leaning towards a truce. "I think you and Jade are wonderful together."

"Thanks," Niall says. A smile creeps onto his face for the first time all morning and Liam's heart lifts at the sight of it. "'m trying not to fuck it up."

"You won't. I know you won't."

"I told her I'd go to the show tonight. Y'know, for support." Niall finally looks at Liam. "'m not a hundred percent with all of this, but you're my best friend and I want you to be happy."

"Thank you," Liam says as her bottom lip wobbles. She makes her way into the kitchen in a matter of seconds and wraps her arms around Niall in a hug, letting out a breath of relief when he hugs her back.

"If he hurts you again, I'll--"

"He won't," Liam swears, hugging Niall tighter.

"But if he does--"

"Then you can punch him as many times as you like."

"Damn right," Niall says fiercely as he holds onto her as tightly as he can. "Nobody messes with you and gets away with it. Love you, Liam."

"Love you too, Niall." Liam pulls back and kisses his cheek. "Jade's lucky to have you, y'know."

"Ah," Niall says as he waves his hand at her, his cheeks turning red. "I'm the lucky one."

Liam smiles widely at him before she pulls him into another hug. He clears his throat and Liam takes a step back to give him a confused look.

"Jade might've told the other girls, too. Y'know, about Harry."

Liam bites her lip and nods. "So I should expect to hear from them sometime?"

"You could always invite them to the show too," Niall suggests. "Y'know, for _support_."

Liam rolls her eyes. "Right. Support." She snickers. "Or so you'll have backup if you take a swing at Harry."

"You said it, not me."


	11. Chapter 11

When Harry asked her to go to his gig, Liam hadn't been sure if anyone would agree to go with her. Now she finds herself squished between Leigh-Anne and Jesy in a completely packed tube compartment on the way to the Chalk Farm station with who knows how many other people heading to see Harry perform at Roundhouse.

She's so distracted by catching bits and pieces of the conversations happening all around them that Liam can't even spare a second to be nervous about going to the gig, unlike she had been just a few hours before. Harry's been texting her on and off all day, spending most of the time asking her to come over in the afternoon so they could go to the venue together. She'd just barely managed to convince him that she needed to accompany Niall, Louis, and the girls to the gig, claiming he needed time to prepare for his performance anyway.

_**i dont wanna b in the way harryyyyy** _

**_you wouldn't be! :( i need you to tell me if my singing is rubbish_ **

**_ur not rubbish, u kno ur not!!_ **

**_but how will i know for sure if you're not there??_ **

**_harry stop it i told u already!!_ **

**_fineeee well will you at least come home w me afterwards :) ;)_ **

**_:P u dont give up do u_ **

**_nope :)_ **

**_harry ur the worst_ **

**_you love me_ **

**_i do :)_ **

"What're you reading?" Jesy asks, her voice in Liam's ear making her jump and quickly pocket her phone. She'd pulled it out of her pocket to check the time and had gotten a little distracted reading over her texts with Harry.

"Nothing," she replies as her cheeks heat up. Jesy gives her a knowing smile before turning her attention back to Perrie who's got her arms around Jesy's waist and her chin resting on Jesy's shoulder. Liam turns her head to see Leigh-Anne turned towards Niall and Jade, but it's still far too loud for Liam to hear what they're talking about. Her eyes drop to where Niall's got his arm around Jade's waist and she smiles at the sight.

Getting off the train is a little harder than normal just because of the sheer number of people all heading for the exit at once. Liam latches on to Jesy's arm as she and Perrie slip through the door and hopes that the others will be able to keep up or find them later on. It's not until they all reach street level that they manage to group back up, just in time to find Louis pressed against the wall outside the station to prevent being carried off in the mob headed towards the venue.

"Looks like there'll be a bit of a crowd," Louis remarks with a cheeky grin. "Guess your boyfriend's a bit famous."

"Seems like it," Liam replies, blushing again. Her phone buzzes inside of her pocket as the seven of them fall in with the crowd heading towards Roundhouse and she checks it quickly, smiling instantly when she sees it's from Harry.

_**can't wait to see you xx** _

"Keeping in touch?" Louis teases lightly.

"We're _communicating_ ," Liam replies, sticking her tongue out at Louis when he laughs. He slips his arm around Liam's neck and hugs her, making it slightly more difficult for the two of them to walk but he doesn't seem to care.

"Did you patch things up with Niall?" he asks quietly.

"I think so," Liam answers honestly. "I mean, he's here, right? That's gotta be a good sign."

"True." Louis' eyes drift over Liam's shoulder, presumably to look at Niall and Jade at the back of their group. "Jade was practically bouncing off the walls at the office today."

"Yeah?" Liam smiles. "I'm glad they make each other so happy. Everyone deserves to be happy."

"Yeah," Louis says with a soft sigh, as though he knew what Liam was getting at without her having to try very hard.

"Louis--"

"I'm happy enough, Li." Louis pats her shoulder. "You concentrate on your own happiness for once and let me worry about mine, alright?"

Liam slumps a little under Louis' arm; she knows he's right and she should just leave well enough alone. She shouldn't jump to conclusions about something she doesn't have all the details for, especially given how doing just that very nearly ruined her relationship with Harry.

"You should also probably text your boyfriend back before he thinks you've gone and left him again," Louis says, the teasing lilt back in his voice.

"Yeah, alright," Liam replies and pulls her phone back out of her pocket.

_**headin 2 the gig now. c u soon :*** _

"Louis?" Liam says, catching his attention after she's put her phone away. "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did." He grins at her, laughing when she rolls her eyes. "What is it?"

"I, um, I never asked before, but… why me?"

"Why you what?"

"Like… you didn't know me. You saw me sing in a pub once and next thing I knew, we were recording an album in your flat. I can't even begin to imagine how I'll ever pay you back for this, and I just…" Liam shakes her head. "Why me?"

Louis stays quiet for a while. Liam concentrates on tuning out the noise all around them, the laughter and shouting from their own group as well as the rest of the crowd heading for Roundhouse. She doesn't want to miss a word Louis says.

"I didn't get into this to make money," Louis says slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I fell into this, y'know, and I think I became sort of numb to it all, in a lot of ways. I don't think I really knew it until Ed decided to step back for a while and I saw just how obsessed with money everyone in this fucking business is and that's just… it's not me, y'know?"

Liam nods as Louis takes a breath; the smile on his face wavering as his mind races.

"When you came into the label that day, _god_ , I had to beg Nick to even just get in the room with you. All he kept saying was _she's not marketable_ and stupid bullshit like that and I just wanted to shake him and scream, like, 'when did you lose your passion?!' Music isn't about the fucking money, it's about making something that people can connect with. I saw that in you, that night at the pub. I saw someone that wrote what she felt deep in her heart, not some bullshit act that you'd put on to make a buck. I couldn't let you go on not being heard."

"Louis," Liam whispers softly. "That's one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me."

"Yeah, well," Louis laughs, "it's thinking like that that's gonna get me sacked, just watch."

"Who needs 'em?" Liam says, smiling widely when Louis turns to look at her. "You should start your own label."

"Yeah?" Louis laughs. "Who'd sign with me?"

"I would," Liam answers in a heartbeat. "Absolutely. So would Niall, and the girls."

"Alright, then. With you lot, who else would I need?"

Liam beams as she slips her arm around Louis' waist, pulling him against her in a hug even if it causes them to stumble a little as they walk. She waits another minute or so before she speaks up again, feeling far less nervous than she had before.

"Louis?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"Y'know," Liam rolls her eyes, "for taking a chance on me. Thanks."

Louis smiles. "Right back at you."

*

Once they reach the concert hall Liam heads for the ticket booth by herself to pick up the ones that Harry set aside for them. In addition to the tickets that have seats in the circle balcony listed in lieu of general admission, there's also seven backstage passes waiting for them.

_**u didnt hav 2 do thissss**_ , Liam texts to Harry with a snap of the passes before she walks back to the others. She hands out the tickets and passes to every one of them, her eyes lingering on Niall's face as he takes his set from her.

"Ooh, proper fancy, are we?" Perrie says with a grin as she slips the lanyard with her pass attached over her head.

"Feeling like a rockstar myself," Leigh-Anne agrees with a laugh as she does the same.

"It was Harry's idea," Liam says to Niall, "I didn't--"

"Nice of him," Niall interrupts. "Tell him thanks, yeah?"

"You can tell him yourself, if you want." Liam gestures to the pass.

"Right," Niall mumbles. "S'pose I can."

"Niall--"

"Let's go inside," Niall says, looking away from Liam and putting his arm around Jade's shoulders.

"D'you think there'll be an open bar?" Jade wonders aloud as she and Niall start walking towards the closest entrance. The rest follow but Liam hangs behind for a moment when her phone buzzes.

_**i know, but i wanted to. have fun :)** _

Liam sighs as she tucks her phone back into her pocket and jogs a little to catch up with the others. The nerves she was doing so well with not thinking about begin to worm their way into her mind again, taking up space where they don't need to be. Liam just wants to be happy, to be excited for the show and to see Harry perform for the first time in so long. But instead she's worried about what could happen when Niall and Harry see each other, or what could happen if they don't.

Liam's so stuck in her head that she can hardly appreciate how nice the section that Harry reserved for them is, but nothing stops the others from doing just that. Even Niall has to admit that it's really fucking nice, albeit it's after a little prodding from Jade.

The opening act passes by in a whirlwind and before Liam knows it, the house lights are dimming again and there's a chorus of screams and cheers as the stage lights come up. The girls all press around Liam as though they're back in the restaurant from weeks ago trying to hold Liam's broken heart together. She wishes she could hug each one of them and tell them she's absolutely fine, but there's something comforting in their touches that Liam didn't know she needed. So instead, she keeps her mouth shut and fixes her eyes on center stage as she waits for Harry to appear.

Her heart leaps into her throat and her breath catches when he walks onstage, a bright smile on his face as he waves to the audience. He glances up towards the section they're in just as he reaches his microphone and his smile grows even wider, though Liam's nearly positive he can't possibly see her watching.

"It's good to be home," he says, his voice booming into the microphone as he keeps looking up. The crowd echoes his sentiment in another round of cheers and screaming and Liam laughs when the girls join in.

Harry finally tears his gaze away and looks out over the rest of the crowd as he introduces himself and his band before launching into the first song of the night. He's even better than Liam remembered him being and her heart swells with pride.

She didn't exactly forget how good of a performer Harry is, but it's certainly hard to miss. He's absolutely electric; Liam can hardly take her eyes off of him. It's clear to see why he managed to get so popular so quickly and the realization shifts something in Liam's heart to make it ache a little.

Liam tears her eyes away from Harry to look out over the crowd and she sees the same look across a hundred different faces. They're all starstruck looking up at Harry; each one looking absolutely and hopelessly enamoured with him, just like Liam.

Harry's set is more than half over when Niall switches seats with Leigh-Anne and takes Liam's hand in his own. Liam jumps a little and looks down at their hands and then up at Niall's face, seeing him looking at her with a soft smile.

"You doing okay?" he murmurs.

"Yeah," Liam answers, her voice cracking a little from lack of use. She's been clapping more than cheering unlike the others and Niall squeezes her hand.

"You sure?"

"It's a lot," Liam admits as she waves her hand around, gesturing to the venue. "I could never do anything like this."

"Sure you could," Niall replies. "You wouldn't have to do it alone, though, if you didn't want to."

"Of course I wouldn't," Liam says as she squeezes Niall's hand tightly. "I'd want you with me. And Louis, and the girls."

"And Harry?"

"He'd be in the crowd," Liam laughs, "otherwise he'd upstage me."

Niall grins. "Not possible."

"Alright, this next one," Harry starts, bringing Liam and Niall's attention back to the stage, "is for someone very special."

Liam hears a chorus of coos from behind her and she blushes as she turns around to tell the girls to stuff it. Niall doesn't let go of her hand.

"I wrote it when I thought I'd lost her," Harry continues, "and I hoped that someday she'd hear it and come back to me." Harry looks up towards their section again and Liam tightens her grip on Niall's hand, unsure of what Harry might say next.

Surprisingly, Harry doesn't say another word. The band behind him starts playing the intro to the next song and Liam holds her breath. _Counted all my mistakes and there's only one standing out from the list of the things I've done_ , Harry sings as he keeps his eyes on Liam. Before she wasn't sure if he could actually see her, but the longer he stares the more she starts to think that he's been able to see her this whole time. _All the rest of my crimes don't come close to the look on your face when I let you go._

Louis presses in close on Liam's other side, hooking his arm through Liam's like an anchor to keep her from collapsing. She glances at Louis for a quick moment, returning his soft smile before she turns back to look at Harry.

_So I built you a house from a broken home_ , Harry's eyes shut as he turns back to the crowd, _and I wrote you a song with the words you spoke_.

"Still doing okay?" Niall leans in to ask as Harry continues to sing. Liam nods, but one look at Niall's face tells her that he can see the tears in her eyes that she's trying to hide.

"I'm fine," she tells him. "It's just…"

"A lot?" he prompts.

"I didn't know," Liam says with a shaky breath. "All this time he was hurting just as much as I was and I didn't _know_."

"It's not your fault," Niall tells her. "You did what you thought was best and he knows that."

"But--"

"It's alright, Liam," Niall squeezes her hand and gestures back to the stage, "just listen."

_Yeah, the taste of your lips on the tip of my tongue is at the top of the list of the things I want_ , Liam shivers a little as she remembers how desperately Harry had kissed her yesterday and hopes neither Niall nor Louis picks up on it. _Mind is running in circles of you and me, anyone in between is the enemy_.

"Oh, I'm the enemy, now?" Niall snorts.

"Niall," Liam says with a soft whine. He shrugs his shoulders but Liam catches the smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth and she can't help but wonder if Niall's finally starting to come around.

_Shadows come with the pain that you're running from_ , Liam turns her attention back to Harry as he tilts his microphone stand forward and leans with it before he takes his microphone off the stand completely and starts walking towards the far side of the stage. _Love was something you never heard enough_.

Liam hears the crowd singing along for the first time and it startles her; she wonders if they've been singing along this whole time and she just hadn't realized it. _Yeah, it took me some time but I figured out_ , Harry sings and then he points his microphone to the crowd and grins widely as they sing back to him, _how to fix up a heart that I let down_.

Harry crosses to the other side of the stage and Liam's heart beats faster the closer he gets. _Now I'm searching every lonely place, every corner calling out your name_. Liam can't even imagine what she would've thought had she heard this before they'd gotten back together. It's hopeful and heartbreaking all at once and Liam's heart just aches to know that Harry missed her just as much as she missed him, if not even more. _Trying to find you but I just don't know, where do broken hearts go?_

Harry looks up at their section again and Liam's breath catches. Her cheeks are absolutely burning and she feels so _ridiculous_ for the way her body is reacting to Harry's gaze but she just can't help it. A smirk curls on Harry's face as he sings the next line, _are you sleeping, baby, by yourself or are you giving it to someone else?_ Liam rolls her eyes and shakes her head, her mind replaying the memory of when Harry had gotten so jealous over both Niall and Louis. _Trying to find you but I just don't know, where do broken hearts go?_ Harry winks at her as he turns on his heel and heads back towards center stage. _Where do broken hearts go?_

The moment Harry reaches the middle of the stage he drops to his knees, _tell me now, tell me now_ , and the crowd gathered in front of him screams even louder than they did before. _Tell me where you go when you feel afraid?_ Liam's grip on Niall's hand is so tight that it's quite possibly cutting off circulation but he hasn't tried to pull away. _Tell me now, tell me now_ , Harry sings as he tips his head back, _tell me will you ever love me again, love me again?_

"I think--" Liam lets go of Niall's hand suddenly and he winces as he shakes it out. "Sorry," she offers with a sympathetic smile.

"S'fine," he replies with a weak laugh. "I'll get feeling back eventually."

"I just… I have to…" Liam turns to look at Louis and he's already stepping aside to let her through.

"Go on, 'm sure he's wondering why you've waited this long," Louis says with a grin.

"Yeah, get in!" Perrie shouts while the others catcall as Liam heads for the back of their section for the easiest exit. She glances back over her shoulder to see Jade slipping into her place and Niall smiling brightly at her and Liam lets out a breath of relief.

There's a security guard standing at the back and he points Liam in the right direction after inspecting her pass, but even as she walks down the corridor he pointed her towards she still has no idea if she's going the right way. Every person she encounters tells her to keep going after they check her pass, but nobody gives her a frame of reference for whether she's getting closer to the stage.

Liam can hardly hear a thing over the roar of the crowd that seems to be getting louder the further she goes, so she figures she must be going in the right direction. She turns a corner after running down a set of stairs and comes to an immediate stop, nearly running headfirst into someone. She looks up, ready to apologize, but freezes when she's met with a burly man that terrifies her on the spot.

He stares her down for a few seconds before his gaze drifts down to her pass and then back up to meet her eyes. His face changes from stern to relieved so quickly that Liam is left even more confused than before; she's certain she's missed something.

"You must be Liam," he says in a warm yet gruff voice. Liam nods, still staring warily at the man before her.

"A-And you are?"

"Paul," he says as he holds out his hand for her to shake. He pulls her towards him instead of letting her hand go, leaning in as though what he says next is a secret. "It's a good thing you came back. Between you and me, I was ready to smother Harry in his sleep if he didn't shut up about you."

"He… what?" Liam blinks.

"Missed you like mad, he did." Paul tuts as he lets go of Liam's hand and shakes his head fondly. "He's a great lad, but he needs to learn when to keep his bloody mouth shut. If I had to spend one more night listening to him piss and moan about being lonely, I'm telling you."

Paul makes a gesture that causes Liam to giggle in spite of herself, and her hand flies up to cover her mouth. Paul looks positively delighted at the sight, but before Liam can say or ask anything, Harry comes bounding offstage and rushes over at once.

"Liam!"

"Ha--" Liam starts to say, but Harry cuts her off with a kiss as he wraps his arms around her and pulls her close. Liam melts against him and puts her arms around his neck to keep from collapsing as she kisses him back.

Liam's blushing furiously by the time Harry pulls back, mostly because of the sheer number of hoots and hollers that have echoed all around them from Harry's band and the backstage crew. She blushes even more when she remembers that Paul was standing right next to her, but when she turns to apologize, he's already gone.

"Alright, alright," Harry says, waving the rest of the onlookers away before he turns back to Liam and smiles. "Hi."

"Hi," Liam replies, and then she wrinkles her nose. "You're all sweaty."

"Been a little busy," he says, laughing. "Not quite finished."

"Of course, I should--" Liam starts to pull away but Harry laughs again and pulls her back in.

"Not yet," he says as he kisses her again. "Still got a couple minutes."

Liam hums softly as she tucks her face against the crook of Harry's neck despite his skin being slick with sweat. Harry rubs his hand up and down the span of her back as he holds her, the two of them content just to be in each other's arms.

"Missed you," Liam murmurs.

"Missed you too," Harry replies. "Been enjoying yourself?"

"Yeah," Liam giggles a little, "that last song, um, was something."

Harry opens his mouth to say something but Liam lifts her head and puts a finger to his lips before he can manage to.

"I know I shouldn't be saying anything, god knows I've written my fair share of songs that, um… well, you know." Liam drops her gaze away from Harry's face. "It was just… a lot to hear."

"I wasn't sure if you'd like it," Harry admits, "but I'd hoped you would."

"I do, I do," Liam says as she looks up at Harry again. "I just… didn't know I'd hurt you that much, I guess."

"I know how you could make it up to me," Harry says with a smile that Liam is immediately quite suspicious of.

"I don't know if I like the sound of that," she says as she gives him a curious look. Harry starts laughing and he kisses her before taking her hand and pulling her towards the stage.

Liam goes with him until he's about to pull her out onstage with him and she quickly digs her heels in. She shakes her head firmly when Harry looks back at her and he pouts.

"No," she says.

"Wait here." Harry kisses her one more time before he goes back onstage, waving to the crowd when they scream his name. He heads towards the band's equipment and picks up an acoustic guitar before he turns around and walks back towards his microphone.

Liam peeks her head out from the side of the stage for half a second before she hides again; there are far too many people out there for her to even _consider_ going out on stage.

"I want to do something a little different tonight," Harry says into the microphone as he slips the strap of the guitar over his head. "Could I get another microphone out here, please?"

"Harry!" Liam hisses, certainly not loud enough for him to hear. A stage hand darts out from the other side to set up a second microphone and Harry turns and smiles at Liam. She shakes her head again but the look in his eyes tells her that he's not taking no for an answer.

"Thanks, mate," he tells the stage hand as he strums a few notes on the guitar. "This next one is a brand new song that's actually not my song at all. It was written by a brilliant songwriter and an even more brilliant woman who I'm _hoping_ ," Harry turns his head towards Liam and grins, "will come out and sing it with me."

"Absolutely not!" Liam whisper-yells.

"You guys want to hear it, don't you?" Harry asks the crowd. They respond with cheers and Liam picks out Louis' voice over the rest as he shouts her name.

"C'mon Liam!!"

Harry laughs into the microphone and turns back to Liam. "They're calling your name, love."

Liam takes a deep breath and steels herself, ready to turn on her heel and walk back to her seat with Niall and the others, but at the very last second she surprises everyone (including herself) and walks onto the stage. There's a burst of cheers that Liam can't quite tell if they're coming from the crowd as a whole or if it's all coming from one particular section, but the sound echoes in her ears and she tries to take a deep breath to settle her nerves. She can hardly look up from her feet to look at the crowd let alone at Harry, but he doesn't let her get too far.

"You are the _worst_ ," she says, trying to keep her face stern but Harry's smile is too wide to resist.

"Just remember that you love me," he says as he puts his hand on her hip and squeezes, "and I love you."

Liam shakes her head, still fighting her smile as she takes her place at the microphone stand next to Harry's.

"You ready?" Harry asks before he steps up to his own microphone. Liam nods even though her heart is racing; she still can't bring herself to look at the crowd, she settles for looking at Harry instead. "Alright," he says with a chuckle as he starts speaking into the microphone, "everyone, this is Liam. She's wonderful and has just recorded a fantastic album of her own."

"Harry, stop," Liam says, surprising herself when the microphone picks up her voice and amplifies it throughout the room.

"She's also incredibly modest," Harry says with a smile, "so let's let the song speak for itself, yeah?"

Liam shakes her head at him as a fond smile finally makes its way across her face. He winks at her as he starts playing the opening notes they'd gone over and over just over a day ago. Liam can't believe that they went from singing this to just each other over Chinese food to now playing it to hundreds and hundreds of people, but the way Harry looks at her makes her feel like it's still just the two of them.

_There's a lightning in your eyes I can't deny_ , Harry sings, not taking his eyes off of Liam. _Then there's me with a sinking boat running out of time_. Liam wishes she could blame the flush in her cheeks on the bright stage lights but deep down she knows it's just from the way Harry's looking at her. _Without you, I'll never make it out alive_. He's always looked at her like she was the only person in the room and while Liam never thought much of it before, now it means everything. _But I know, yes I know we'll be alright_.

Liam lets out a quick breath before she takes a hold of her microphone and closes her eyes. _There's a devil in your smile that's chasing me and every time I turn around it's only gaining speed_. Liam opens her eyes and catches Harry smiling at her before she finally lets herself look out at the crowd. _There's a moment when you finally realize there's no way you can change the rolling tide_. Her eyes drift upwards to the balcony and she spots Niall, Louis, and the girls all waving and cheering frantically and Liam laughs a little. _But I know, yes I know that I'll be fine_.

_This time I'm ready to run_ , Liam and Harry sing together and her eyes dart back to his, _escape from the city and follow the sun_. Liam doesn't know why she was so nervous before because it's all suddenly disappeared and she feels more comfortable on the stage than she ever has before. _'Cause I wanna be yours, don't you wanna be mine?_ Liam chances a look out at the front row and all she sees are smiling faces looking back at her. _I don't wanna get lost in the dark of the night_.

_This time I'm ready to run, wherever you are is the place I belong_. Liam closes her eyes again for a moment and relishes in the joy she feels from singing this song, full of hope and promise. _'Cause I wanna be free and I wanna be young_. It feels like the weight of the world has finally been lifted off of her shoulders and as she looks at Harry, she knows that he can feel it too. _I will never look back, now I'm ready to run_. He still hasn't taken his eyes off of her and instead of feeling self-conscious like she might've before, Liam feels like nothing could possibly bring her down. _I'm ready to run_.

Liam takes a step back from her microphone to let out a laugh, quickly stepping back into place when Harry starts to sing the next part. _There's a future in my life I can't foresee_ , he winks at Liam again and she shakes her head. _Unless, of course, I stay on course and keep you next to me._ As Liam looks out at the crowd again, there's a small part of her that feels bad about the possible number of hearts that are breaking in that very moment. _There will always be the kind that criticize_ , she sings, shaking that idea out of her head. She foolishly let Harry go once, she's not going to do it again. _But I know, yes I know we'll be alright_.

Adrenaline courses through Liam as she glances up at the balcony again as Harry sings, _this time I'm ready to run_. She grins widely at her friends and they all cheer back at her. Never in a million years did she expect the night to go this way but she's so glad it did. She looks at Harry just as he sings, _I'd give everything that I've got for your love_ , and tucks away this memory to keep forever. If nothing else ever comes of her music, she doesn't care. This has been enough.

_This time I'm ready to run_ , she sings, thankfully not stopping in surprise when Harry doesn't sing it with her. He mouths for her to keep going and she does, _escape from the city and follow the sun_ , but it doesn't stop her from staring at him in confusion. Not once did they practice it like this; they'd always sung the chorus together. _'Cause I wanna be yours, don't you wanna be mine?_ Liam turns towards the crowd and they cheer even louder, _I don't wanna get lost in the dark of the night_.

She glances back at Harry to see that he's taken a step back, watching her with that same smile on his face. It doesn't make sense to her, why he's having her sing the end of the song all on her own, but she doesn't have the time to stop and ask. _This time I'm ready to run,_ Liam takes her microphone off of its stand and takes a couple steps forward, _wherever you are is the place I belong_.

Liam's smile grows as she nears the edge of the stage, almost close enough to reach out and touch the people in the front row who are stretching their hands towards her. _'Cause I wanna be free and I wanna be young_. She chances one more look over her shoulder, if only to make sure that Harry's still there. He rolls his eyes at her and she quickly turns away, looking out at the crowd with a bright smile as she sings the last line, _I will never look back, now I'm ready to run._


	12. Chapter 12

"When did Louis say he was going to do it?"

"Do what?" Liam asks, taking a mug of tea from Harry when he offers. "Put up the album?"

"Yeah," Harry replies as he climbs onto the bed, settling down next to her. "Today, wasn't it?"

"You might be right," Liam says, leaning over Harry's lap to grab her phone from his bedside table. "What's today?"

"Thursday," Harry chuckles, "did you forget?"

"Hard to remember what day it is when you don't leave the house," Liam mutters, not needing to look at Harry to know he's smirking at her.

It's been well over a week since Harry's gig at Roundhouse and in that time Liam decided she didn't want to try and offer her album to Louis' label, but rather release it online for a low cost. Louis tried to talk her out of it at first, and then tried to get her to agree to a higher price. Liam was firm on both fronts and Louis eventually relented, promising he'd release it online once he finished building her a website.

"Where's your laptop?" Liam asks as she reads Louis' reply. "He says the site's up."

"You had it last," Harry says after he sets his mug down. "Didn't you?"

"Technically, yes." Liam grins as Harry moves closer to her. "But you're the one who took it away from me."

"I have no memory of that," Harry replies as he tilts his head and leans in to press his mouth against Liam's neck.

Liam giggles and haphazardly tries to push Harry away. "That's because you were a little preoccupied with something else."

"Was I?" Harry hums and Liam nods. "Sounds like me."

"Certainly does," Liam replies with another giggle. "So I don't know where you put it, but I hope it's still in one piece."

"If it's not, I'll have to punish you," Harry says as he reluctantly slides off the bed, "it was your fault I was distracted."

"My fault?" Liam scoffs, shaking her head when Harry grins at her. "It absolutely was _not_ my fault that you can't get through a single day without--"

Liam stops talking when Harry picks his laptop up off the floor and brandishes it, acting extremely silly as he brings it over to her.

"You were saying?" he asks in a rather cocky tone as he climbs back onto the bed, taking his sweet time crawling over her to get back to his side.

"Nothing," Liam says as she opens the laptop and purposefully avoids looking at him while he stares her down. "I didn't say a thing."

"Uh-huh," Harry replies, sounding suspicious as Liam's phone goes off. Harry's closer so he grabs it and Liam holds out her hand as she types in the website address with the other, only turning to look at Harry when he doesn't put her phone in her hand.

"Harry?" she asks. "What is it?"

"Louis said to check Ed's Twitter," Harry says, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he unlocks Liam's phone - ignoring her protest - and opens up her Twitter app.

"Why would he--" Liam starts to ask as she leans over to look at her phone still in Harry's hands, but her voice gives out when she sees what Louis was talking about.

At the top of Ed's timeline is a tweet with the link to her album and it's already been retweeted over a thousand times.

"How?" Liam looks at Harry. "Did you tell him it was coming out today?"

"Louis must've," Harry replies, passing Liam her phone as he reaches for his own. Liam closes the laptop and sets her phone aside when she sees the frown on Harry's face and she curls up against his side.

"What's wrong?"

"He cheated," Harry says with a pout. "Telling Ed before he told us, Louis _cheated_."

"Oh, Harry," Liam says, trying to sound sympathetic but she can't help the giggles that slip out. "Are you really upset that Ed tweeted about it?"

"Maybe," Harry says in a petulant voice. "He got to hear your album before I did, it's not fair."

"Is Ed here?" Liam asks as she presses a kiss against Harry's cheek.

"No…"

"Does _Ed_ get to do this?" Liam turns Harry's head towards her and she kisses him, pressing herself closer to his body, smiling against his mouth when Harry groans.

"He better not," Harry says in a low voice and Liam laughs.

"He doesn't," she says, "so don't get in a strop about it."

"I'll show you a strop," Harry says, tossing his phone aside as he pushes Liam down and pins her against the bed, kissing the laughter out of her mouth.

"See?" Liam says breathlessly a while later when she's trying to find the laptop amongst the sheets and clothing that got scattered after they got distracted. "Not my fault at all, you're the one who can't keep his hands to himself."

"Never hear you complaining," Harry says as he pinches Liam's bum. She squeaks and reaches back to slap his hand away before she gives up on finding the laptop and settles back against Harry's chest.

"Give me your phone," she says, trying to reach for it but Harry holds it above her head.

"Hold on, 'm almost done."

"What're you doing?" Liam whines a little as she tries to get his phone again. She gives up a few seconds later, huffing and crossing her arms until Harry brings his arm back down and shows her.

At first, Liam doesn't understand what she's looking at. She takes the phone out of Harry's hand and gets a better look to realize that she's now looking at something on Harry's Twitter timeline and she shifts a little so she can turn her head to look at him.

"What?" he asks, his smile giving everything away.

"What?" she mocks a little as she waves his phone in his face. He retweeted Ed's tweet and added _I guess I can't keep her all to myself anymore_ to it. Liam rolls her eyes and kisses his cheek. "You didn't have to do that."

"That's not all I did," Harry whispers as he taps the screen of his phone, going back to the rest of his tweets and showing her what he was doing when she was trying to get his phone.

**@Harry_Styles: told you she was brilliant xx**

It's followed by the same link that Ed tweeted and Liam looks up at Harry again, only this time there's tears in her eyes and she can't figure out how that happened.

"Harry…"

"Oh, Liam," he laughs a little, "don't cry."

"I'm not," Liam sniffles as she wipes at her eyes. "You didn't have to do it twice, Harry, honestly." She laughs and kisses him. "Why are you like this?"

Harry smiles widely and kisses her again. "Because I love you."

**Author's Note:**

> "implied/referenced cheating" refers to Liam spending most of the fic thinking Harry cheated, but eventually finds out that he didn't.
> 
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> [tumblr post](http://imlouisaf.tumblr.com/post/160507536463/all-i-wanted-was-you-by-justyrae-liamharry-53k)


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